
li < 3j]_1L5 



60th Congress 1 cfmatf /Document 

1st Session i c^i^inaij. < t^^_ ^q-j 



BOUNDARY LINE 

BEIWEEN 

FLORIDA AND GEORGIA 



CERTAIN DOCUMENTS AND REPORTS 
RELATING TO THE LOCATING AND 
MARKING OF THE LINE BETWEEN 
THE TERRITORY AND STATE OF FLOR- 
IDA AND THE STATE OF GEORGIA 



PRESENTED BY MR. BACON 



^Iay 9, 1908. — Ordered to be reprinted as a Senate Document 



WASHINGTON 
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 

1&08 



fin 

(in Ur 



;^ 20th CONGRESS, [ 55 ] 

<\>^ 1st Session. 

FROM THE 

PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, 

TRANSMITTING 

COMMUNICATIONS FROM THE GOVERNOR OF GEORGIA, 

IN RELATION TO THE SUBJECT OP 

RUNNING AND MARKING THE LINE 

DIVIDING THE 

TERRITORY OF FLORIDA 

FROM THE 

STATE OF GEORGIA. 



January 23, 1828. 
Printed by order of the Senate of the United States. 



WASHINGTON : 

PRINTED BY DUFF GREEN. 

1828. 



JUN 3 19G8 
D. of D. 



[55] 



To the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States. 

Washington, '-I'^d January^ 1828. 
By the report of the Secretary of War, and the Documents from 
that Department, exhibited to Congress at the commencement of their 
present session, they were advised of the measures taken for carrying 
into execution the act of 4th May, 1S26, to authorize the President of 
the United States to run and mark a line dividing the Territory of 
Florida from the State of Georgia, and of their unsuccessful result. I 
now transmit to Congress copies of communications received from 
the Governor of Georgia, relating to that subject. 

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 



[55J 



An act to prevent the surreying or granting of certain lands, either 
■ under head rights, or in any other way; and for other piuyoses. 

AA'hereas the dividing line bet^yeen the State of Georgia and 
Florida, has not yet been run and marked, but when run must be from 
the head or source of St, Mary's river, straight to the confluence of 
Flint and Chattahoochie rivers; and whereas, it is believed, that the 
said line must, and of right ought to, commence from the head or 
source of the south branch of St. Mary's river, in which event a large 
portion of territory Avill be included within the limits of Camden 
Count}', and subject to be surveyed and granted as vacant lands: 

Sec. 1. Be it therefore enacted, by the Senate and House of Repre- 
sentatives of the State of Georgia, in General Assembly met, and it is 
hereby enacted by the authority of the same, that it shall not be lawful 
for any portion of the territory lying between a direct line from 
Ellicott's mound, upon the north branch of St. Mary's river, to the 
junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, and the dividing 
line which may hereafter be run and marked between the State of 
Georgia and Florida, to be survej^ed and granted as vacant land, or 
in any other way, or for any other purpose, until provision therefor 
shall be made by law: and that all surveys which shall be so made, 
shall be, and the same are hereby declared, null and void. 

Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that 
when the said line shall be run and marked, if any portion of the 
territory shall be included within the State of Georgia, which may 
be claimed and held under and by virtue of a grant or grants from 
the United States, upon purchases made previous to the passage of 
this act; then, and in that case, the said grant or grants shall be, and 
they are hereby declared, good and valid, to all intents and purposes, 
Proi^ided the United States shall and do. within two years from the 
time of running and marking said line, pay to the State of Georgia, 
the amount for which the territory so held and granted, may have 
been sold by the United States. 

[Signed] IRBY HUDSON, 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
[Signed] THOMAS STOCKS, 

President of the Senate. 
Assented to, Dec. 24:th, 1827. 

[Signed] JOHN FORSYTH, 

Goi'ernor. 



[55] 



G 



Executive Department, 

MiLLEDGEVILLE, 20th NoV. 1827. 

Sir : On the question which has arisen between the State of Geor- 
gia and the United States, during the recent effort to mark the 
boundary line between this State and the Territory of Florida, it 
will, it is presumed, be satisfactory to you, to examine, before the 
meeting of Congress, the evidence on which the State relies to estab- 
lish the fact, that the source of the St. >rary's, is the lake or spring 
from which issues the most southern branch of that river; and, there- 
fore, the spot at which must terminate the straight line to be drawn 
from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, according 
to the second article of the treaty between the United States and 
Spain, of the 27th October KD."). ' The subject having been brought 
before the General Assembly, by my predecessor, and not yet acted 
on by them, it would be improper for me to do more, in transmitting 
that evidence, than to request your attention to it; no doubt being 
entertained that its force and importance will be duly weighed. 
I have the honor to be. 

With perfect consideration. 

Your obedient servant. 

JOHN FORSYTH. 
The President 

Of the United States. 



Copij of the Report of John Mr.Bride. Esq. relative to the source 
of the St. Marj/s River. 

Eatonton, Auf/xst 7. 1827. 

Sir: Agi-eeably to your instructions of the 20th June last, re- 
quiring me, under the'direction of Thomas Spalding, Esq. Commis- 
sioner, to ascertain the true head or source of the St. Mary's river, 
I proceeded immediately to Darien, to join Mr. Spalding. For rea- 
sons which he has detailed to you, Mr. Spalding believed it unnec- 
essary that he should accompany me in the tour, and superintend. 
personall5\ the discharge of the duties confided to us. After receiv- 
ing from him eveiy requisite aid in procuring supplies and trans- 
portation, and. at my request, his written instructions, I repaired 
without delay to the region which I was to examine, and arrived at 
Filman's on the 3d of July. 

By reference to the chart which accompanies this report, it will be 
seen that the St. Mary's is formed by three principal branches, the 
north, the west, and the south. To ascertain the source of each of 
these branches, their length, and relative magnitude, at their points 
of confluence with each other, was considered the object of my mis- 
sion; and having learned that the north and south branches unite 



7 [55] 

about four miles below the mound A., oi- Commissioner's Encamp- 
ment, I proceeded to that point, and carefully measured the width, 
depth, and velocitj^ of the current of each liranch, hotli at the junction 
and about half a mile above it. From the metui rcsuU of these ob- 
servations, it appears that the south brunch discharges 1369, and the 
north branch 093 cubic feet of water per minute. Hence the south 
branch is to the north as 1369 is to 993, or very nearly as 40 to •29. 
A traverse was commenced near the junction, and continued up the 
south branch to the outlet of Lake Spalding, about thirty miles, 
and another traverse, four miles hi length, connecting Lake Spal- 
ding with Lake Randolph. These are beautiful lakes of transparent 
water, the former supposed to be nine miles in circumference, the 
latter tAvelve. As no soundings could be made, their deptli is un- 
known. The sources of the south and west branch being thus ascer- 
tained, the volume of water contained in the north and west branches 
was then measured at their junction, and the following result 
obtained : 

Cubic feet of water discharged by tlie north branch, in 1 minute, 159 
Do. do. do. do. by the west branch, in 1 minute, 238 

The fact is then clearly established, that, of the three branches into 
which the St. Mary's is divided, the south is the greatest, and the 
north is the least, though it is represented by Messrs. Ellicott and 
Miner as the principal. The only criteria for determining the princi- 
pal branch of a river, must be its length, volume of wate3'. and general 
direction: and these all coincide in the south branch of the St. Mary's. 
It is three miles longer than either of the otlier branche'^. and dis- 
cliarges one-third more water than both of them together. Its general 
di]"ection agrees Avith that of the lower section of the river, muoh bet- 
ter than either of the other branches. If a line be drawn from Point 
Peter to the confluence of the north and south branches, and indefi- 
nitely produced towards the south-west, it will pass through Lake 
Spalding, the source of the south branch. 

It had been intended to make a running sur^•ey of tlie nortli branch 
also, but from the very satisfactory nature of tlie information alivnidy 
obtained, togetlier with some previous knowledge of the souiv<'< of the 
north branch, this intention was abandoned: believing that a further 
examination, while it would be attended witli additional ox[)ense, 
could be productive of no real utility. 

In collectino- information respecting the toj^ograi^liy of the country, 
which it had l^ecome my duty to examine. I availed my^.elf of the aid 
which could be afforded by the in1ial)itants. Though the population 
is extremely sparse, yet no country is ]:)etter known than this. Re- 
sorting hither for the benefits of the chase, and for the pasturage of 
immense herds of cattle, their knowledge of the country is extensive 
and accurate: and experience has proven that information derived 
from them may be safelv confided in. Messrs. Cone. Brown. Bar- 
bour, Jernigan, and Sparkman, of Camden county, and Filman. Ellis, 
Parrish. and Long, of Florida, have freely eonimunicateil any in- 
formation that has been requested of them : and I have the satisfac- 
tion of being able to inform your excellency, that, in support of my 



[55] 8 

own (ij)ini()ii. cliicHy t'duiuk'd ii})(ni actual adiiK'aMU'cinent. these men 
lia\(' no (l()ul>t but that the north branch of tlie St. Marv's is less than 
either of the other two. and that it can liave no just pretensions to 
bciii'r considered tiie principal. By Mr. Filnian. who lives within 
half a mile of the Pine Lo<r. I was informed that, at the time of 
makin«r this examination, the whole of the water in the north branch 
was ati'orded bv Alli^fator Creek, and that, at the Pine Loir. the 
channel was dry and dusty. 

The United States and Spanish Commissioners, who in IsOO at- 
tempted to ascertain the sonrce of the St. Mary's, in ascendinj; the 
river with their canoes. ]iassed the junction of the Xorth and South 
branc-hes, considerintr the former as the })rincii)al. That those Com- 
missioners should have made an erroneous (letermination, may be 
attributed to the deceptive aj^pearance of the two I)ranches at their 
confluence, and to the peculiarly unfavorable season in which their 
investigation was made. The channel of the North branch is wider 
than that of the Soutli. Its depth is iri'eater, and its water of a dark 
reddish color. At the point of disembo<ruement the South branch is 
a beautiful limpid stream, whose narrow channel and transparent 
water render it apparently one-third less than the Xorth. But its 
velocity is one hundred and sixteen feet per minute, while that of 
the Xorth branch is only thirty-eio^ht. The disparity of width in 
these branches is accounted for by the difference of the countries in 
which they have their sources. That in wdiich the South branch 
rises, is jrently undulating: and the transparency and low tempera- 
ture of the water prove its origin to be principally in sprinss. The 
vicinity of the sources of the Xorth branch, is frequently an extended 
plane, with but little elevation or depression, which in rainy seasons 
IS com])letely inundated for many miles: and these vast sheets of 
water beinir di-ained into the Xorth branch, increase its volume to a 
torrent, which forms a channel much wider than the South branch. 
AVhen the United States and Spanish Commissioners were here in 
February, 1800, Mr. Ellicott, in his Journal, informs us that the 
swamps at that season of the year Avere " absolutelv impenetrable,"' 
in consequence of the ju'eceding Avinter's rains. AVe cannot, there- 
fore, be surprised at their failure to make a correct determination. 

The loss sustained by (Jeor^-ia in runninii' the bomidarv according; 
to the aareement of those Conunissioners. is a triauirle whose base is 
l.")? miles, its periiendicular 30 miles, and area 2.'>."».") s(|uare miles, or 
l.r)07.200 acres. 

Respecting: the aeneral cliaracter of the country throutrh which our 
southern l)oundary passes, it may be remarked, that, in proceeding 
westwardly from the Pine Los. for sixty-five miles, the soil is ex- 
tremely barren, and swamps, cypress jionds. bay oralis, and saw pal- 
metto abundant. The Suwanny and Allapaha rivers are found in 
this section: but there is little land in their vicinity that can ever 
reward the a^i'iculturist for his labors. On approachin<r the AVeeth- 
IfK'hoclne. the face of the country is much altei-cd. Ileiv it becomes 
more undulatimi'. and lime pit'^ and lakes of pellucid watei* are skirted 



9 [55] 

by slips of fertile land. I^^'oni this, the soil is remarkable only for 
its sterility for tAventy-five miles, and until Ave approach the Ocilla, 
where are found tracts of excellent lanil interspersed with lakes and 
deej) morasses. The saAv jialmetto and cypress ponds here disapj^ear; 
but the former barrenness of soil continues generally throughout the 
remaining part of the boundary, except in the vicinities of the 
Mickasuk}' and Imonia Lakes, the Okelockanne River, and Atta- 
pulgas Creek, Avhere large bodies of rich loam will repay the pur- 
chaser foi- his adventure, and the laborer for his toil. 
With considerations of respect. 

^'our Excellency's most ob't serv"t. 
[Signed] ' JOHN McBRIDE, .^urreyor. 

Governor Troi p, MUJ<-<J</('i'ilJe. 



Notes and Estinuitts jikkIc in <iMcrt(tinin</ the rohnnc of the several 
Br<(ii(]i(x of the St. Mary's Rirev. 

No. 1.— X. Branch. (Juncticm C.) 

Width, - - - - - ' 39. G feet 

Mean depth, - r - - - 660 

Velocity of the surface, per minute. - - 4422* 

To find the Volume. 

V 4422 — 1 = .5.('.4i) 

5.649 X 5.649 = 31.9, the velocity at the bottom and sides. 

44.22 + 31.9 „Q,. „ \ ■, 
^ =38.6, the mean velocity. 

And 39.6 X -666 X 38.6 = 1003.77 cubic feet, the volume. 

No. 2. — S. Branch. (Jmiction C.) 

Width, - - - - - - 26. 4 feet. 

Mean depth - - - - - .5 

Velocity of the surface, per minute - - 126. 72 

To find the Vohune. 

V 126.72 — 1 = 10.257. 

10.257 X 10.257 = 105.2. the velocity at the bottom and sides. 

126.72+105.2 ,,.,,^. ^, , . 
~ = 11. ».!!(). the mean velocity. 

And 26.4X.5X115.96=153().()7 cubic feet, the volume. * 

* To obtain the mean velocity of a cunvnt from tli:it of its snrfaee, Mr. 
Fulton has obligingly furnished me with the following rule, in which x repre- 
sents the velocity of the surface, antl z that of the bottom and sides. 

X -t 2 
V ;i — 1 = V 2. And — 2 "= ^^^ mean velocity. 



[55] 10 

No. 3. — Xorth Branch (half a mile above Xo. 1.) 

Width - - - - - - 40.26 feet. 

:Mean depth - - - - - G. 97 

Velocity of the surface, per minute - - 40. 92 

To -find the mean Velocity. 

V 40.92 — 1 = 5.4, very near. 

5.4 X 5-4 = 29.16. the velocity of the bottom and sides. 

40.92 + 29.16 o-Ai ^u 1 •, 
^^ = 3o.04, the mean velocity. 

And 40.20 X .697 X 35.04 = 983.26 cubic feet, the volume. 

Xo. 4. — South Branch (half a mile above Xo. 2.) 

Width ------ IS. 56 feet. 

Mean depth - - - - - 1. 14 

Velocity of the surface per minute - - 64. 68 

To fnd the mean Velocity. 

V 64.68 — 1 = 7.042. 

7.042 X 7.042 = 49.58, the velocity at the bottom and sides. 

64.68 + 49.58 .-7-,q ^u i v 
^ = ;)7.13, the mean velocity. 

And 18.56 X 1.14 X ;'>7.13 = 1208.67 cubic feet, the volume. 

Xo. 5. — Xorth Branch (Junction of the X. and W. branches.) 

AVidth ------ 18.48 feet. 

Mean depth - - - - -1.03 

Velocity of the surface, per minute - - 11. 22 

To fnd the mean Velocity. 

V 11.22 — 1 =2.3.5. nearly. 

2.35 X 2.35 = 5.52. the velocity of the bottom. 

11 02 + 5 5''' 

■" ' — '-— = 8.37. the mean velocity. 

And 18.48 X 1-03 X 8.37 = 159.3 cubic feet, the volume. 

Xo. 6. — West Branch (Junction of the X. and W. branches.) 

AVi(hh - - - - - - 11.22 feet. 

Moan (h^ptli - - - - - .32 

Velocity at the surface, ])er minute - - 74. 58 

To find the mean Velocity. 

V 74..'-,s _ 1 ^ 7.636.. 

7.636 X 7.636 = 58.3. velocitv at the l)ottom and sides. 
74.58 + 58.3 = 66.44. the mean velocitv. 
And 11.22 X -32 X 63.44 = 238..")4 cubic feet, tlie vchnue. 



!!■ [55] 

Kesult of Xo. 1. N. B. - - - 1003.78 

Result of No. 3, X. B. ... 983.26 



Sum ..... 10^7.04 



Mean ..... 993.52 

Result of Xo. 2, S. B. ... 1530.67 

Result of No. 4. S. B. ... 1208.77 



Sum ..... 2739.44 

Mean - - - - - 1369.72 

As 1369 : 993 : : 4 : 2.9 

Or S. B. : N. B. : : 4 : 2.9, or as 40 to 29. 

Result of No. 5, N. B. ... 159.3 

Result of No. 6, W. B. ... 238.54 

As 238.5:159.3:3:2. 
Or W. B. : N. B. : 3 : 2. 

Respectfully submitted. 
[Siorned] JOHN McBRIDE. Surveyor, 
October 1, 1827. 



[55] 



12 



The (roronioi' of frcorf/hi to tlw PrestfJcHf of the I'nifcil States. 

ExECr TIVE DePAKTMKXT, (tE()K(WA. 

MiLLED(iEviLLE. Deeemhei' :ii). ISiiT. 

Sir: 1 lune been requested by the General Assembly to open a cor- 
respondence with you. in order to facilitate the adjustment of the 
boundary line l)etween this State and the Territory of P"h)rida. It is 
well understood here. that, until the act of ("on<rress. passed tiie 4th of 
Ma}', 182(). autliorizinj:: the President to run and mark a line dividing 
Florida from (xeorgia. is altered or repealed, the Chief Ma<j:istrate of 
the Union has not power to comph" with the just expectations of the 
State, in relation to its southern boundary. This connnunication is 
made, therefore, under the expectation that it Avill be laid before Con- 
gress, with suf'h reconnnendations as the resi)ective rights of the State, 
and of the United States, may. in your judgment, require. The sub- 
ject is of deep interest to this State, not fi-om the value of the land, 
the title to Avhich is dependent upon the decision of it. but because 
the description of the boundary is a part of our Constitution. To the 
Union it it is of little moment, except as it atfords a fair occasion to 
consult, frankly, the wishes of one of its members, and to establish a 
character for liberality, to the individual State, of far greater impor- 
tance than the ac<|uisiti()ii of a few liundred thousand acres of ai'id 
territory. 

It is one. too. on which even a concession to tlie State, if the right 
were doubtfiU, is recommended by the considerati(m. that the land 
which would l)e given up will remain, although in a ditl'erent form, 
a portion of the United States, and of the resources of the Union. 

Addressing myself to the Government of the Union, to whom the 
Territory of Florida noir l)elongs, no doubt is entertained that a de- 
monstration of the right of the State will be followed by a prompt 
acknowledgment, and such legislative proA isions as may be necessary 
to secure the full enjoyment of it. The southern limits of Georgia 
depend, first, upon the charter to the Lords Proprietors of Carolina, 
of 10<j;i. Secondly, upon the proclamation of the King of (xreat 
Britain, of ITC).'^. establishing the boundary between Georgia and tlie 
two Floridas, and the King's connnission to Sir James "Wright, of 
17G4. Thirdlv. upon the treaties between the United States and 
Great Britain." of the :Wth of Xovember, 178-2, and of the ;^d of Sep- 
tember, 17s:'. 

Confinino- myself to the southern bouiulary of the State, according 
to the territorial limits fixed in the conq)act with the T'nited States, 
of iSO-i. it is a line i)eginning at the most southern l)ranch of the .St. 
Mai-y's Kiver: thence up the said river to its source: thence in a direct 
line to the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers. .Subse- 
quent to the treaty of 178-2. Spain, having ol)tained froin Britain a 
oe.ssion of the Floridas. without any descrii)tion of limits, was dis- 
posed to make territorial pretensions inconsistent with our rights. 
The treaty of \~^.>-k concluded at San Lorenzo, by Mr. Pinkney and 



i:r [55] 

the Diiko of Al<u(!i;i. i)iit an end to these pretentions. The second 
article of the treaty, conformably to the instructions of Mr. Jetl'erson, 
then Secretary of State under General Washing-ton's administration, 
describes the line ))etween Florichi and the United States, (acting for 
Georgia,) in the words used in the Treaty of Peace of 1782, between 
the United States and Great Britain. For the purpose of preventing 
disputes, and to produce an immediate good effect on the Indians on 
the borders of Georgia and Florida, Mr. Pinkney introduced, without 
instructions, into the treaty, an article, (the third.) providing for the 
immediate demarcation of the l)Oundary line described in the second 
article. 

This article re(|uired the appointment of a Uonnnissioner and Sur- 
veyor by each Government, who were to meet at Natchez, within six 
months from the date of the ratilication of the Convention, and to run 
and mark the line according to the preceding article; they were to 
make plats and keep journals of their proceedings, which were to be 
considered a part of the Convention, and to have the same force as if 
inserted therein. A Commissioner and Surveyor were appointed by 
the United States to execute these stipulations. It is not necessary to 
detail all tlie circumstances which occurred, from the meeting of the 
American Commissioner with the Spanish officer, who avjis said to be 
the Commissioner of Spain, to the j^eriod when the work was finally 
interrupted and left unfinished; which, by some fatality, happened 
precisely at the point where the present southern boundary of Georgia 
begins on the Chattahoochie. It is sufficient for the ])resent purpose to 
recall to your recollection these facts,.resting upon the assertion of the 
Connnissioner of the United States, that eveiw artifice was used by the 
Sj^anish Crovernor of Louisiana, who is stated to have been the Com- 
missioner of the King of Spain, to pi'event the connnencement of the 
demarcation: that every obstacle he could secretly interpose was ))re- 
sented to delay the execution of the work; that by the dishonorable 
intrigues of the Spanish authorities. Avith the Indians residing in the 
vicinity of the line to be marked, and their disregard of the provisions 
contained in the third article of the treaty, they at last succeeded in 
compelling the American Commissioner to abandon the work, and 
leave it, as it has continued to this day, incomplete. 

The State now asks from Congress tlie fulfilment of the stipulations 
nuide for her, in 1795, with Spain, the completion of the wH)rk not 
completed, because S])ain was unfaithful to her engagements. 

The current of events, favorable to the repose and to the prosperity 
of the Union, have placed it in the power of Congress to do imme- 
diate ju.stice. It is not now necessary for you. Sir. to prosecute a pain- 
ful and tedious negotiation with a Government most unwilling to 
understand the just claims of others, and nrocrastinating through \wl- 
icy the acknowledgment of them when they can no longer be denied. 
The United States stand in the place of Spain, hold the title of that 
(xovernment. and no other, to the Territorv of Florida, and they have 
only to satisfy them-^elves what Spain could justly claim, in a contro- 
versy with this State, under the Convention of San Lorenzo. That 



I 55 I 14 

C'Onvention. requiring a direct line to be drawn between two un- 
changed geographical points, does not seem susceptible of controversy, 
and were tiie subject now. for the first time agitated, none could be 
anticipated. But a difficulty is knoAAn to exist, and is to be found in 
a peculiar provision of the before-mentioned act of Congress, of the 
4th of May, 1826. 

The motive for introducing that provision is perfectly understood 
and duly respected: it was intended to prevent what it lias produced, 
delay and discussion. The provision is. that the line to be so run. 
(dividing Florida from Georgia.) and marked, shall be run straight 
from the junction of said rivers. Chattahoochie and Flint, to the point 
designattd as the head of St. Mary's river, by the Commissioners 
appointed under the third article of the treaty of friendship, navi- 
gation. &.Q. &.Q. between the United States ancl Spain, made at San 
Lorenzo, &.c. &c. This provision was founded on the belief that the 
point, designated as the iiead of St. Mary's, ivas the source of that 
river. This belief, entertained here as Avell as at Washington, recent 
and accurate examination has shoAvn to be unfounded. The evidence 
relied on by the State on this point, is already in A'our hands: the 
chart of the St. Mary's, prepared by Mr. IM'Bride, and his report of 
the examination made by him for the source or head of that river. 
The supposition on which the proviso in the act of Congress was 
founded, being shown to be erroneous, no disposition can exist to per- 
sist in retaining it, to the injury of the State, unless the right of (\m- 
gress to insei't it is clearly shown, and it is recjuired by their obliga- 
tions to the other States. If Spain were now the party interested, it 
is scarcely ))ossibk. that in utter disregard of the obligations of truth 
and justice, she should insist that the line should be run and marked 
to the point dexiffnated as the head of the St. Mary's, by the Com- 
missioner appointed under the 3d article of the Convention of 1795 : 
(m the hypothesis that Spain Avas still the OAvner of the Floridas. and 
so forgetful of honor as to nud-ce such a denuind, by Avhat ai-gument 
could it be sustained ( It Avould be asserted that the acts of the Com- 
missioners appointed under the ;3d article had become a part of the 
Convention, and wa*- a^ obligatory as if inserted in it. This assertion 
is tr\K' "idy of those acts of the Connuissioners which they Avere au- 
thorized by the 8d article to perform. They were authorized to nnt 
and mark a line. Has it been done? It has not — more than 150 
miles of the line is yet to be run and marked. To meet this state of 
facts it might be asserted, that it being found im|)racticable to run 
and mark the line at that time, the Commissi(mers agreed upcm the 
two tei-minating points, and tlescribed in their plats and journals, the 
direction of the line to be hcfcaffer run and marked, and that the head 
of St. Mary's Avas thus agreed to be Avithin a cei-tain distancL' of a 
mound raised. Were the C'(»uMuissioners a|)point^ed for this purpose? 
Certainly not. They Avere appointed to run and uuirk a line, not to 
establish the points bet Aveen Avhich the line should, at some distant 
time, be run and marked. By Avhat authority did the Commissioners 
exercise this poAver? It is not given by the 3d article of the treaty — 
no agreement made by them is binding uptm either of the powers 



15. [55] 

who appointed them, unless subsequently ratified by both. Such an 
agTcement as the one made, was not within the spirit of the article, 
but is directly contrary to it; since it substitutes an artificial object as 
the point of termination, for the natural one fixed on in the Conven- 
tion ; and confessedly changes the line. The extent of the agreement 
is stated by the American Commissioner, Ellicott, in these words: 
" It was therefore agreed that the termination of a line supposed to be 
drawn North 45 degrees, East 640 perches from the moimd B, should 
he taken as a point, to, or near which, a line should be drawn from 
the mouth of Flint river; which line, when drawn, should be final, 
and considered as the permanent boundary between the United States 
and his Catholic Majesty, provided it passed not less than one mile 
north of mound B ; but if, on experiment, it should be found to pass 
within less than one mile north of the said mound, it should be 
corrected to carry it to that distance." No remarks on the peculiar 
character of the line described, are deemed necessary. The passage 
is quoted to show that Ellicott transcended his authority, and did \v jiat 
was not binding on his government, unless subsequently ratified by it. 
It is presumed he had no instructions to make such an agreement ; if 
he had, this State denies that the Convention of 1875 authorized 
them to be given. Was this agreement ratified by the two powers 
prior to the cession of Florida, by Spain, to the United States? It is 
taken for granted that it was not. If not, the question remains as it 
did under the Convention of 1795. The stipulations of the third ar- 
ticle are yet to be performed, and the points to which the line, from 
the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie, is to be run, is to be de- 
termined by referring to the second article of the Convention, not by 
an appeal to the agreement of Ellicott. It is a geographical point, 
unvarying and unvaried ; not the creation of man's labor — it is a spot 
described hy the two governments, not that substituted by their sub- 
ordinate unauthorized agents. The agreement of Ellicott was not 
obligatory even upon himself. Prior to the running and marking the 
line, had any error, geographical or astronomical, been made by acci- 
dent, it was in the power, and it was the duty of the Commissioners, 
to correct it as soon as it was discovered. Can it be pretended that, if 
Ellicott had discovered, immediately after the supposed source of the 
St. Mary's was agreed upon, that the spring or lake from whence 
issued the southern branch was the true source of the river, he was 
bound to abide by the judgment he had formed on imperfect infor- 
mation, and to run and mark the line contrary to the provisions of 
the Convention, to the injury of his country? If the line had been 
completed by Ellicott, under the mistaken impression entertained by 
him of the true source of the river, and the mistake had been clearly 
ascertained, it would have given the General Government great satis- 
faction to have been able to rectifj% by a negotiation with Spain, 
the error committed. Called upon by Georgia, would the General 
Government have hesitated to represent to Spain that a just govern- 
ment would best consult its honor and its interest by rectifying with 
frankness an error committed by its inferior ofiicers? Can it be 
doubted that the United States would have seized, with avidity, the 
43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 2 



[55] 16 

first occasion to oblige Spain to surrender to Georgia territory held 
in consequence of such an error ? If such would probably have been 
the course of the General Government, had the error been consum- 
mated by the running and marking of the line, I leave you to consider 
what would have been their conduct had Spain, remaining owner of 
the territory, obstinately persisted in claiming to have it run and 
marked according to EUicott's agreement, after the mistake com- 
mitted by him had been discovered and exposed. The United States, 
tracing the failure to complete the work to its source, might have 
overwhelmed Spain by justly deserved reproaches for disgracefully 
attempting to take advantage of its own infidelity to sacred engage- 
ments — by indignant recitals of the intrigues and artifices used, the 
treachery displayed, from the meeting of the Commissioners at 
Natchez until Ellicott was driven from the Chattahoochie. I shall be 
pardoned for supposing the government of Spain would have exposed 
itself to rebuke by advancing such claims. The possibility has been 
admitted to bring fairl}^ into view the peculiar position of the 
United States in relation to this question.. The Trustees of Georgia, 
who arranged the Convention of San Lorenzo, are the holders, by 
purchase, of the title of Spain, under that Convention. In this their 
present position, their former relation being necessarily remembered, 
no pretention can be consistently made by the United States, which 
would have been disputed if made by Spain while the Floridas be- 
longed to that power. No claim of Georgia which the United States 
would then have seriously pressed upon Spain, can be honorably 
resisted by the United States, holding the property as a cession from 
that power. Above all, it would be the extremity of disgrace, if the 
Federal Government should seek to take advantage of an error com- 
mitteed by its authority while acting as the guardian of the rights of 
this State, when Providence has placed it in its power to correct the 
error by a simple exertion of its own will. 

The accompanying copy of an Executive Message to the General 
Assembly of this State, and of an act passed by that body, are for- 
warded that they may be presented, with the documents heretofore 
transmitted, to the consideration of Congress, whenever you shall 
deem it proper to bring the subject of the boundary line between 
Florida and Georgia before them. 

I am, sir, ver,y respectfully, 
• Your obedient servant, 
[Signed] JOHN FORSYTH. 

John Q. Adams, 

President of the United States. 



20th Congress, fRet). No. 204.1 Ho. of Reps. 



1st Session. 



DIVIDING LINE BETWEEN GEORGIA AND FLORIDA. 

March 21, 1828. 
Read, and laid upou the table. 



Mr. P. P. Barbour, from the Committee on the Judiciary, to which 
the subject had been referred, made the following 

REPORT: 

The Committee on the Judiciary., to which was referred the message 
of the President, of the 22d of Jamiary, 1828, transmitting copies of 
com^munications from the Governor of Georgia., relating to the 
line dividing that State from the Territory of Florida., report: 

The correspondence between the President and the Governor of 
Georgia, thus referred to the committee, presents the question, ^^Tiat 
is the correct boundary between that State and the Territory of Flor- 
ida? To enable the House to decide this question, the committee 
beg leave to present to their consideration, a condensed view of the 
evidence in relation to it. 

The charter of Carolina to the lords proprietors, in 1C63, extended 
southwardly to the river Matheo, now called St. John's, supposed, in 
the charter, to be in latitude 31°, and so west, in a direct line, as 
far as the South Sea. 

It appears, by an extract from the charter of Georgia, in 1732, that 
the boundaries were " all those lands, countries, and territories, situ- 
ate, lying, and being, in that part of South Carolina, in America, 
which lies from the northern stream of a river, commonly called the 
Savannah, all along the sea coast to the southward, unto the most 
southern stream of a certain other great water or river, called the 
Alatamaha, and westward from the heads of the said rivers, respec- 
tively, in a direct line, to the South Seas." Before the date of this 
charter to Georgia, by a second charter to Carolina, in 1667, its lim- 
its had been extended south and westward, as far as the degree of 
twenty-nine, inclusive, of northern latitude. The Government of 
Carolina, having been, in its origin, a proprietary one, was, in 1729, 
surrendered by seven out of eight of the proprietors, and afterwards 
by the eighth, and then became a regal one; and the province was 
di\aded into the two Governments of North and South Carolina. 
The order of Council making this division, and fixing the bounda- 
ries, is not accessible to the committee, nor is it deemed material. 

The trustees of Georgia, in 1752, surrendered the whole territory 
to the King, and the government was afterwards entirely regal. 



2 [Rep. Xo. 204.] 

The King, by a proclamation of the 7th October. 17G3. annexed 
to the Province of Georgia, all the lands lying between the rivers 
Alatamaha and St. Mary's, and, by his commission to Governor 
Wright, of the 20th January. 1764, cleclares the boundaries to be on 
the north by the most northern stream of a river, there commonly 
called Savannah, as far as the head of said river, and from thence, 
westward, as far as our territories extend: on the east by the sea 
coast, from said river Savannah, to the most southern stream of a 
certain other river, called St. Mary, including all islands witliin 
twenty leagues of the coast, lying between the I'ivers Savannah and 
St. Marj'^, as far as the head thereof: and from thence, westward, as 
far as our territories extend, by the north boundary line of our 
Provinces of East and West Florida. 

By the treaty of peace, in 178?>. between the United States and 
Great Britain the southern boundary of the United States is thus de- 
scribed : " South by a line to be drawn due east from the determina- 
tion of the line last mentioned, in the latitude of thirty-one degrees 
north of the equator, to the middle of the river Apalachicola or Cata- 
houchee: thence, along the middle thereof, to its junction with the 
Flint river; thence, straight to the head of St. INIary's river; and 
thence, down along the middle of St. Mary's river, to the Atlantic 
Ocean." 

By the proclamation of 17(53. before referred to, the King had de- 
clared that part of the northern boundary of East Florida, which is 
now the subject of inquiry, to be as follows, viz: To the northward, 
by a line drawn from that part of said river (Apalachicola) where 
the Catahouchee and Flint rivers meet, to the source of St. Mary's, 
and, by the course of the said river, to the Atlantic Ocean. Spain 
having obtained from Great Britain a cession of the Floridas, with- 
out, as is believed, any description of limits, but with a knowledge 
of the provisional treaty of November, 1782, and under what were 
the boundaries of those provinces in the hands of Great Britain, some 
difficulty arose between the United States and Spain, in relation to 
this boundary, which led to the treaty of 27th October, 1795, com- 
monly called the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real ; by the second article 
of which, it was agreed, that the boundary line between the United 
States and the Floridas, shall be designated by a line, beginning on 
the river Mississippi, at the northernmost part of the 31st degree of 
latitude north of the equator, which from thence shall be drawn due 
east to the middle of the river Apalachicola or Gatahouchee: thence 
along the middle thereof, to its junction with the Flint; thence, 
straight to the head of St. Mary's river; and thence, down the middle 
thereof, to the Atlantic Ocean. 

It was provided by the 3d article of that treaty, that a commis- 
sioner and surveyor, to be appointed by each of the contracting par- 
ties, should run and mark the boundar}^ according to the stipulations 
of the 2d article, above recited. It was further stipulated, that they 
should make plats, and keep journals of their proceedings, Avhich 
should be considered as part of the convention, and have the same 
force as if they were inserted therein. In conformity with this stipu- 



[Rep. No. 204.] 8 

lation, Andrew Ellicot was appointed commissioner, and Thomas 
Freeman surveyor, on the part of the United States, for the purpose 
of runnino^ the line mentioned in the 2d article. This appointment 
was made in May, 1796 : it appears from a letter of the commissioner, 
dated 22d March, 1800, to the then Secretary of State, that a report 
of what had been done, would soon be completed; l)ut that report, if 
made, is not now, as far as the committee are informed, to be found. 
It appears from the same letter, that our commissioner experienced 
great difficulty and embarrasment in the execution of the duty as- 
signed to him, from the Indians, and he intimates at the instigation 
of others. The journal of Ellicot was published in 1S03. It ap- 
pears that the commissioners did not run and mark the line from the 
junction of Catahouchee and Flint rivers, to the head of St. Mary's; 
but they designated a point, which should be taken as the one, to or 
near which a line should be drawn from Flint river, which, when 
drawn, was to be final ; provided, it passed not less than one mile 
north of a certain mound, erected by them ; but if, on experiment, it 
should be found to pass within less than a mile north of said mound, 
it should be corrected to carry it to that distance. This mound is near 
the Okefenoke Swamp. It appears from a rejjort of John Mc- 
Bride, a surveyor, appointed by Georgia, in the year 1827, that there 
is a stream, called by him the South Branch of the St. Mary's, much 
farther south than the one considered the head branch of that river, 
by the American and Spanish Commissioners ; and he says, that both 
its length, its volume of water, and general direction, coincide in 
favor of the South Branch. It appears, by a document referred to 
as part of this report, marked A, that, under a resolution of the 
Senate of Georgia, in 1818, the Governor of that State appointed 
commissioners to examine and report whether Ellicot's mound was 
the true head of the St, Mary's ; and from the letter of the Governor, 
in 1819, to the Secretary of War, it appears, that the commissioners 
had reported, that, after a careful examination, they found the head 
of St. Mary's to agree with the report made by Mr. Ellicot. Two 
of the commissioners, in a paper referred to as part of this report, 
marked B., think it probable that they may have been misled hj their 
guide — assigning as the reasons of that impression: 1st, that they 
recollect to have seen what appeared to them, through thick brush 
wood, to be a lively little stream, emptying in through the opposite 
or right bank of the southern or middle fork of the St. Mary's ; which, 
being pointed out to the pilot, he replied, that the branch they were 
pursuing was the right one ; and, 2d, by the representation given by 
the survey of McBride. After this review of the evidence, it will 
be seen by the House, that the question is, What is the head, or source 
of the St. Mary's? for the other end of the line, to wit: the junction 
of the Catahouchee and Flint rivers, being uncontested, so soon as 
the head of the St. Mary's is ascertained, all difficulty ceases as to 
the boundary. The committee, are of opinion, upon the whole view 
of the case, that the point designated by the American and Spanish 
commissioners, ought to be considered as the head of St. Mary's. 



4 [Rep. No. 204.] 

They consider the sohition of the question to depend on this, which 
stream is to be considered the true St. Mary's river, according to 
reputation, and the understanding and acquiescence of the parties 
concerned. As far back as 1800, the commissioners of the two Gov- 
ernments considered, upon examination, what is now called the 
North Branch, as the St. INIary's; and the Georgia commissioners, in 
1819, concur with Mr. Ellicot, as to the head of that river ; although 
another river unites with this, which vents more water, and is longer, 
yet, if it were not called, or known by the name of St. Mary's, these 
circumstances would not alter the case. The committee infer, that 
it was not so called, or known, from these circumstances; 1st, that 
the commissioners of two Governments were appointed to settle 
and decide a contested question of boundary : to do this, the head 
of the St. Mary's being one of the termini, it became their duty to 
seek for information from every source, accessible to them, as to 
which stream was the St. Mary's, and what was its head. Having 
fixed upon a particular stream, as being the true river, and designated 
a point as its source, and this being matter of notoriety, Georgia 
acquiesced, without objection, as far as the committee are informed, 
till 1818; and then the report of their own commissioners coincided 
with Ellicot's designation, and that, too, though they had as their 
pilot, as the committee believe, the very person on whose suggestion 
they had been appointed. In this report, Georgia acquiesced, as far 
as the committee is informed, until recently. As far as the nature 
of this unsettled country will admit of reputation as to the names 
of its streams, these facts may be considered as probably the best 
evidence which was the St. Mary's river, and the head of that river, 
as intended in the several State papers above recited. There is an ex- 
ample mentioned in one of the printed documents, which will illus- 
trate the idea of the committee. It is now believed to be a geo- 
graphical fact, that the Missouri is a longer stream than the Missis- 
sippi, and we believe vents more water ; and yet, as it never has been 
called by the name of Mississippi, if we were now called upon to 
decide what was the head of the Mississippi, we should take, not the 
source of the Missouri, though it unites with the other stream, but 
the source of what is, and has been called the Mississippi. It is not 
intended to say that the case in question is as palpable: but, after 
settling the principal, that, in ascertaining the head of a stream of a 
given name, we must inquire where two streams unite, not which 
IS the longest, or vents the most water, but which has been called and 
known by the given name, we are then to decide, upon the best evi- 
dence in our power, as to that fact ; and we tliink the evidence is in 
favor of the stream designated hj Ellicot. 

Resolved, therefore, as the opinion of the committee, that, in 
running the boundary line between Georgia and Florida, the point 
designated by the Commissioners under the 3d article of the treaty 
of 1795, betAveen the United States and Spain, ought to be the ter- 
mination of the line from the junction of the Catahouchee and Flint 
rivers. 



[Rep. No. 204.] 5 

(A.) 

In Senate, V2th Deceniber^ 1818. 

Resolved^ That his Excellency the Governor be requested to appoint 
two fit and proper persons, to proceed, without delay, to ascertain the 
true head of the St. Mary's river; and, if it shall appear that the 
mound thrown up by Mr. p]llicot and the Spanish Deputation, is not 
at the place set forth in the treaty with Spain, that they make a spe- 
cial report of the facts to the Governor, who shall thereupon commu- 
nicate the same to the President of the United States, accompanied 
with a request that the lines may be run agreeable to the true intent 
and meaning of the aforesaid treaty. 

And it is further resolved. That the Governor order out a suitable 
detachment of militia to protect the said Commissioners in the per- 
formance of their duty. 

Approved: \^th Decemher.^V^l^. 



Executive Department, Georgia, 
Milledgeville^ llth Fehruary, 1819. 

Sir: I take the liberty to call your attention to the subject of 
the contemplated line between this State and the Province of East 
Florida, which you no doubt recollect is expected to be nm this Spring 
by the General Government. 

Preparations are making to commence surveying that section of 
country in a short time: it is. therefore, very desirable that the line 
should be defined as early as possible. 

The Legislature of this State, at their late session, having received 
satisfactory information that the mound thrown up by Mr. Ellicot 
and the Spanish Deputation, on the Okefinocau Swamp, is not the 
true head of St. Mary's river, as contemplated in the treaty with 
Spain, directed me to appoint Commissioners to ascertain the fact, 
and to communicate the result .to the President of the United States, 
with a request that the line might be laid out agreeabh'' to their re- 
port. Majors General Floyd and Thompson, and Brigadier General 
Blackshear, have been appointed to, and are now engaged in, the per- 
formance of that duty. Their report shall be transmitted to you as 
soon as I receive it. 

I have every reason to believe that the head of that river will be 
found at least twenty miles south of the point agreed on by ]\rr. Eli- 
cot and the Spanish 'Commissioners. Should this conjecture prove to 
be a fact, the State of Georgia, will be entitled to the land within that 
boundary, according to the treaty with Spain. In any event, it is of 
great importance that one of those lines should be completed as soon 
as circumstances will justify the measure. 

Enclosed I hand you a resolution of the Legislature on the subject. 
With high respect. I am. sii'. vour obedient servant, 

WM. EABUN. 
The Hon. John C. Calhoun, 

Secretary of TFar, Washington City. 



6 [Rep. No. 204.] 

Executive Department, Georgia, 

Milledgeville, 3d March^ 1819. 
Sir: On the ITtli ultimo. I had the honor to address you on the 
subject of the conteniphited line between this State and the Province 
of East Florida. I stated that the Legislature of this State had di- 
rected nie to appoint Commissioners to ascertain the true head or 
source of the St. Mary's river, and I promised to forward their report 
to you as soon as the same was received. The Commissioners have 
returned, and reported, that, after a careful examination, they found 
the head of that river to agree with the report made b}^ Mr. Ellicot, 
and prove, beyond the possibility of doubt, that the information re- 
ceived by the Legislature of this State relative to that subject was 
incorrect. I flatter mj^self that directions will be forAvarded to Mr. 
Lumpkin immediately to close that line, according to the treaty with 
Spain. And. if the General Government can aiford us assistance in 
guarding the Surveyors who will be engaged in laying out the 
country, it will be acknowledged as a great accommodation. 
I am, with high respect. 

Your obedient servant, 

WM. KABUN. 
Hon. J. C. Calhoun, 

Secretary of War. 



(B.) 



In the year 1817, Captain William Cone, then a meinl)er of the 
Legislature of Georgia, represented, on his own knowledge of the 
St. Mary's river, that Mr. Ellicot had mistaken its true head or 
source: and that an accurate survey would establish the fact, that the 
head or source of the middle fork or branch, (perhaps then called 
the South Branch) which was twent}^ miles south of Mr. Ellicot's 
Mound, would be found to be the true'source of the St. Mary's river, 
and therefore the true point of demarkation l)etween the State of 
Georgia and the then Spanish province of East Florida. The Gov- 
ernor of Georgia was authorized, by the Legislature, to appoint Com- 
missioners to ascertain the truth of the facts alleged by Captain 
Cone. The undersigned, with Brigadier (leneral David Blackshear, 
were appointed and especially instructed by the Governor of Georgia. 
They employed Captain Cone as a pilot, and, with a competent sur- 
veyor, caused to be measured (beginning at or near the point desig- 
nated by Ellicot as the head of the St. Mary's river) the distance from 
that point, by the meanders of the northwest branch, t oits junction 
with the stream or branch represented by Cone to be the true source of 
the St. Mary's, and up the left bank of the latter branch, until the 
Commissioners reached an extensive swamp, into which the pilot, with 
two of the Commissioners (the undersigned) penetrated al)out half a 



[Rep. No. 204.] 7 

mile, and saw no water or water channel. Capt. Cone was then di- 
rected by the Commissioners to pass entirely across the swamp, (to the 
pine barren beyond the SAvamp,) who, on his return, reported that 
there was no stream of Avater or water channel in the swamp ; and that 
we had reached the head of the branch to which he had referred in the 
information given by him to the Legislature. On a comparison of 
the length of two streams, it was found that the latter, from its 
junction with the other to the swamp above referred to, was much 
the- shortest; and the Commissioners consequently reported in favor 
of the former as the head or source of the St. Mary's river. 

It is, however, more than probable that the Commissioners may 
have been misled by the inadvertency of Captain Cone, who professed 
to be intimately acquainted with the geography of that part of the 
country, and on whom they were instructed to rely, who may have 
been diverted from the principal stream, by mistaking a branch of it. 
And we the undersigned are inclined to this belief; first, because we 
recollected to have seen, a short distance below the swamp to which 
we have referred, what appeared to us, through thick brushwood, to 
be a lively little stream, emptying in through the opposite or right 
bank of the southern or middle fork of the St. Mary's, which was 
pointed out to the pilot; who replied, that the branch we were then 
pursuing was the right one; and because of the representation given 
by the survey of McBride. 

JOHN FLOYD, 
WILEY THOMPSON. 

February 29^A, 1828. 



20til CONGBESB, [Doc. No. 50.1 Ho. OF REPS. 

2d Session. ■- -• 

DIVIDING LINE— GEORGIA AND FLORIDA. 



REPOET TO, AND RESOLUTION OF, 

THE 

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA, 

IN RELATION TO 

RUNNING AND FIXING THE BOUNDARY LINE 

BETWEEN 

THE SAID STATE AND THE TERRITORY OF FLORIDA. 



January 5, 1829. — Read, and referred to the Committee of the Whole House 
to which is committed the Message of the President of the United States, 
of the 3d of March last, upon the same subject. 



Executive Department, Georgia, 

December 26, 1828. 
Gentlemen : I transmit the enclosed report and resolutions, agree- 
ably to the wishes of the General Assembly. 

I am. gentlemen, your obedient servant. 

JOHN FORSYTH. 
The Hon, the Representatives from Georgia 

in th^ Congress of the United States^ Washington City. 



REPORT, &c. 

The Joint Committee on the State of the Repuhlic. to whom was re- 
ferred that part of the Governor'' s commvnication which relates to 
the dividing line between Georgia and the Territory of Florida^ 
have hffd the same under consideration., together with the accom- 
panying documents., and, after an attentive examination of the 
svhject. report: 

That the Executive, conformably to a resolution of the last session, 
caused the report then made to be laid before Congress, and, in 
further compliance with the request of the Legislature, opened a 
correspondence with the President of the United States, in which the 
claims of Georgia to her legitimate and constitutional boundary were 
zealously and ably asserted. The report made to the Senate of the 
United States, by the judiciary committee, recommended the post- 
ponement of the subject until the ensuing session. That to the House 
of Representatives was drawn to a more definite conclusion, by re- 
solving, " as the opinion of the committee, that, in running the bound- 



2 [Doc. No. 50.] 

ary line between Georgia and Florida, the point designated by the 
commissioners under the third article of the treaty of 1795. between 
the United States and Spain, ought to be the termination of the line 
from the junction of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers.'' This re- 
port was not acted upon; the subject, consequently, is yet to be dis- 
cussed and decided. Your Committee, reposing full confidence in 
the General Government, and deeply sensible of the inviolability of 
Georgia's claim, cannot but exjoress their disappointment that the 
committee should, upon the evidence before it, have hesitated to 
recommend the repeal of the act of Congress of 1826, or such a modi- 
fication of it as would have enabled the President to empower com- 
missioners, in conjunction with this Government, to run and mark 
the line agreeably to the rights of the parties; and still more are they 
surprised that reasons should have been sought after, and arguments 
employed, on which no just inference against our claim can be 
sustained. The whole argument used by the committee charged with 
this matter, has for its foundation, and arises out of, the mistake of 
Mr. Ellicott, and the Spanish commissioner, in designating the north 
branch as the true source of the St. Mary's. This mistake is the 
key-stone of the whole arch; it is from this that they say the north 
prong was called St. Marys', and ought to be so considered; it is this 
that Jed them into the error of declaring that the commissioners of 
the two Governments were appointed to settle and decide a contested 
question of boundary; and because this mistake was not detected 
before the line was about to be run, the acquiescence of Georgia is 
presumed, and urged as an argument against her claim. 

It is a fact admitted by all parties, and which forms the very es- 
sence of this controversy, that the line between the Chattahoochie 
and Flint rivers, and the head of St. Mary's river, was neither traced 
nor marked b}^ the commissioners appointed under the third article 
of the treaty with Spain. From that article they derived their 
powers, and by a reference to it, it will appear that they were not 
plenipotentiaries, but merely ministerial agents, acting under orders, 
to run and mark the line according to the stipulations of the 2d 
article of the treaty, which is in the following words : " the southern 
boundary of the United vStates, which divides their territory from the 
Spanish Colonies of East and AVest Florida, shall be designated by 
a line beginning on the river Mississippi, at the northernmost part 
of the 31st degree of latitude north of the equator, which from thence 
shall be drawn due east to the middle of the river Apalachicola or 
Chattahoochie; thence, along the middle thereof, to its junction with 
the Flint; thence straight to the head of St. Mary's river; and thence, 
down the middle thereof, to the Atlantic ocean." From the Missis- 
sippi to the Chattahoochie, they executed their commission according 
to the stijiulations of the treaty. The remaining part of the duty 
assigned them they neglected to ]:)erform ; and whatever agreement 
they may have made by virtue of the powers invested in the third 
article cannot be reasonably insisted upon as authority for varying the 
true line, as the article, in its most enlarged construction, does not 
extend so far as to justify the running of the line in any other direc- 
tion, or from and to any other points, than those designated in the 
2d article. The point of departure and the terminating point are 
both fixed by the 2d article; and it is provided in the 3d, specially, 
that the commissioners should run and mark from and to those points. 



[Doc. No. 50.] a 

The points referred to are from the junction of the Chattahoochie 
and Flint rivers to the head of the St. Mary's river, and not to mound 
A or mound B, or to any other indefinite place, to be fixed upon at 
the commissioner's discretion. As the proceedings of those commis- 
sioners present the only difficulty, your Committee beg leave to cite 
the whole article under which they acted, to wit : " In order to carry 
the preceding article into effect, one commissioner and one surveyor 
shall be appointed by each of the contracting parties, who shall meet 
at the Natches, on the left side of the river Mississippi, before the 
expiration of six months from the ratification of this convention; 
and they shall proceed to run and mark this boundary according to 
the stipulations of said article; ihej shall make plats, and keep 
journals of their proceedings, which shall be considered as part of 
this convention, and shall have the same force as if they were inserted 
therein." It is charitable to presume that the judiciary committee 
did not examine minutely the provisions of this article, or they would 
not have exposed their judgment to impeachment by asserting that 
" the commissioners of the two Governments were oppointed to settle 
and decide a contested question of houndary.'''' 

There is no discretion conferred in this article. If their plats and 
journals were to have the same force as the convention, they were 
nevertheless obliged to be in accordance with its stipulation. If, 
therefore, Mr. Ellicott agreed, as is insisted upon, that- one mile 
north of mound B should be as far south as the line, when run, should 
approach, it is very palpable that he exceeded his authority, even 
though he may have made a plat of mound B, and journalized the 
agreement. He was not sent there to make an agreement defining 
apoint to which the line should be run at some future time, but to 
run and mark the line between points alread}^ described. If per- 
mitted to vary the stipulation of the treaty, he could, with as much 
propriety and equal justice, have fixed upon a point fifty miles fur- 
ther in the interior of Georgia. The question is, did the Spanish 
and American commissioners run and mark the line from the junc- 
tion of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers to the head of the St. 
Mary's river, as they were directed to do? No: they ran no line 
at all between those points! What did they do? They agreed that 
the line should be run at some future time, and by some other per- 
sons, to a certain other point, different from that fixed by the 
treaty ! ! ! The committee who have claimed this extraordinary 
power for the commissioners, place themselves in an inextricable 
dilemma, as they not only consider themselves authorized to over- 
turn the treaty they were ai:)pointed to carry into effect, but like- 
wise assume for them the right to bargain away the soil and sov- 
ereignty of a sovereign State, who could not, under her obligations 
to the Union, interfere in settling the boundaries of the United 
States, though on that line of it she was more immediately con- 
cerned than all her sister States together. So far from those com- 
missioners being justified in the exercise of the power which they 
arrogated, your Committee, next to the loss of the liberties of their 
own State, would regret to see the time when the Government of 
the United States should become so forgetful of the limitations of 
her prerogatives, as to assume the power of ratifying a treaty with 
any foreign nation, by which the least portion of the soil of a State 
should be taken from' her without her consent. 



4 [Doc. No. 50.] 

The United States is bound by the Constitution to protect us from 
invasion. Upon the supposition, then, that the line had been run and 
marked agreeably to the report of the Spanish Commissioners, and 
had been sanctioned by the Government, by a ratification of the 
treaty, it would have imposed upon her the disagreeable alternative 
of breaking the treaty with Spain, or abandoning her obligations 
to the confederacy. If Florida were yet a Spanish province, Geor- 
gia would have a right to recj^uire the United States to perform her 
sacred engagements, by drivmg from our soil the Spaniard who 
invaded it. '" To provide for the common defence^'' is one of the 
principal objects of our political association; and could the United 
States humiliate themselves upon our application to have our soil 
and our sovereignty restored to us, by pleading that they had ceded 
it to S])ain. and therefore could not interfere, such a disregard of 
her obligations would be productive of the worst of consequences, 
as it would destroy all confidence in the protection of the Constitu- 
tion. It is not expected, now that the Federal Government is the 
proprietor of Florida, that it can be unmindful of the dechiration 
in the Constitution, that " no new State shall be formed or erected 
within the jurisdiction of any other State, nor any State be formed 
by the junction of two or more States, or yavts of States, without 
the consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned." Has the 
Legislature of Georgia ever given her assent, in any manner, that 
that portion of the State should be detached and set apart to assist 
in the formation of another State? The foregoing allusion to the 
obligations of the General Government to the States, we have 
thought it advisable to make, because it does not appear, from the 
report made to the House of Representatives, that the committee 
themselves consider Ellicott's mound to be the head of St. Mary's; 
but they say it " ought to be so considered, because Ellicott and the 
Spanish Commissioners agreed that it should be so, and that the 
Georgia Commissioners, in 1S19, concurred in the designation; from 
which circumstances it has the reputation of being the head of St. 
Mary's; and l)ecause of that reputation, it should be considered the 
true head or source of the St. Mary's." This, though not precisely 
their language, is the amount of their argument. Your Committee, 
conceiving that they have most conclusively proven the American 
and Spanish Commissioners to have acted extra-officially in making 
mounds and agreements not j^rovided for by the Treaty, any repu- 
tation of names inferred from those acts is too vague to require 
serious examination. 

In regard to the acquiescence of Georgia, the facts cited in the 
report to Congress prove that the authorities of tlie State were de- 
ceived. If Georgia had considered the act of the United States 
and Spain as decisive and final, she would not have deputed com- 
missioners to have made an examination. The very deputation 
shows that slie conceived, as must be admitted, that she had a right 
to be heard in settling her own boundary. She did not, though, 
send those Conunissioners to make a final settlement of her bound- 
ary. She could only confer such power when the United States was 
ready to join her in the commission. They Mere sent merely upon 
an exploring tour, for the satisfaction of the State, on a disputed 
point. The United States v^ere under no obligation to abide by 
the opinion formed. How, then, can the United States, upon any 



[Doc. No. 50.] 5 

principle of reciprocity, contend that Georgia should be forestalled 
by an opinion as to an isolated fact, to which they held themselves 
free to agree or disagree? The acquiescence of Georgia, in the ex- 
tent to which it has been given, only proves that she was then, as 
she fS now, and ever will be, while she respects the rights of others 
as she does her own, willing to be governed in the running of that 
line by the true points. She desired, then, no more than she be- 
lieved to be her right; and from the evidence then in her posses- 
sion, she supposed the point fixed upon by Ellicott was the true 
point. She contends now for no more than later developments in- 
contestibly prove to be her own. 

Your Committee feel authorized by the facts to deny that Georgia 
has ever acquiesced so far as to agree that the line should be run to 
Ellicott's mound; there has been no definite act of the State, by 
which the matter has been settled, or considered settled, by either 
party. It is true, her Commissioners believed that the mound was at 
the source of the river, upon whose information the Governor's opin- 
ion was then predicated ; all of which was mainly owing to the con- 
fidence reposed in the previous examinations of Mr. Ellicott. They 
were not, however, associated with Commissioners of the United 
States to settle the boundary: they were acting merely ex-parte, in 
the search of information, whose report, if correct, would not have 
bound the United States, and if erroneous, cannot bind Georgia: 
neither this nor any other act includes either party, because the 
parties never have acted in conjunction; consequently, the true head 
of the St. Mary's has always been debateable, and from the limited 
information as to the topography of the country, it was obliged to 
remain so, until Commissioners were duly appointed by the parties 
to run and mark the line. The argument of the Committee, that the 
north prong was called the St. Mary's, and therefore " intended in 
the several state papers above recited," to which they attach the 
greatest importance, is based upon the same mistake of their own 
agent; for, from the evidence adduced by them, it appears that Elli- 
cott was the first who gave it the name of St. Mary's, in exclusion 
of the other branches; and by an assumption of their own, they de- 
prive the southern branch of a participation in the rights of a name. 
This argument cannot avail, even upon the principle which they 
were forced to admit in their illustration, until a name for the south 
prong, different from St. Mary's, shall have been established, and 
that too known to the King of Great Britain, when the boundary 
of Georgia was described; as it is clear, by the commission to Gov- 
ernor Wright, that it was intended by the Royal Government to 
extend the eastern boundary of Georgia to the most southern stream 
of St. Mary's, and thence to the head thereof. The river took its 
name at the disemboguement ; of course, all streams coming in on the 
south were southern streams of that river. To the head of the most 
southern stream, is the point at which the eastern line determines; 
for it is in a subsequent clause that the southern boundary is de- 
scribed to be " thence westward, as far as our territories extend, by 
the north boundary line of our Province of East and West Florida." 

By this commission, all previous boundaries of Georgia were re- 
voked and determined. To this, then, we are to look for our geo- 
graphical limits; and fortunately for "us, in this exigency, it de- 
scribes that stream of the St. Mary's to be the head, or soutce, for 



6 [Doc. No. 50.] 

which we are now contending, with an accuracy that can no longer 
be misunderstood. It is probable that the course of the river was 
not accurately known; from which it is inferred, that it was the in- 
tention of the Royal Commission that Georgia should extend as far 
south as the most sonthern stream^ and to the head thereof, ov that 
part of the description Avould not have been incorporated in the east- 
ern boundary. It is reasonable to believe that this identical stream 
was meant, and not the stream at the disemboguement, which was 
between Amelia Island and the Main, which is one of the mouths of 
the St. ]\Iary's. 

It could not have applied to that, as both the Provinces of Geor- 
gia and Florida were at that rime under the same regal government, 
and Amelia was not then, nor has it at any time since, been con- 
sidered as belonging to Georgia. If, then, it did not mean the south- 
ern stream at the mouth of the river, it must have meant the south- 
ern stream higher up the river. It is from this charter that our 
Legislature conceived themselves authorized, in 1783, to declare our 
boundary to be '* from tlie fork of the Apalachicola, where the Chat- 
tahoochii' and Flint rivers meet, in a direct line to the head or source 
of the southernhioxt stredni of the St. Marj^'s river, and along the 
course of said river to the Atlantic Ocean " — which furnishes addi- 
tional evidence that the south prong was known at that day to be 
the head of the river. If the southern stream were not ascertained 
to lead to the source of the river, there would be more plausibility 
in the entertainment of different opinions upon the subject; as, in 
that event, the boundary acknowledged by Great Britain in the 
treaty of '82. and jirovided for us by the treaty with Spain in '95, 
would vary from that described by the regal commission of '64, and 
our act of '83. But when all these documents agree that the head of 
the St. INTary's is one of the points by which the boundary was to be 
regulated, and the rights conveyed in the charter of Florida are not 
violated, does it not require a tenacity of opinion, approaching obsti- 
nacy in error, to insist upon a deviation? It is not exjoected that 
Congress will be led by sophistry to the support of an erroneous 
claim. These questions, then, result: if the line were to be run to 
the point agreed upon by the Commissioners, under the 3d article 
of the treaty with Spain, would it run according to the boundary 
described for us in our old charter? according to the boundary 
which is secured to us in the definite treaty of peace with Great 
Britain? which is provided for us in the treaty of '95, with the 
Spanish Government? which our act of '83 recognizes? and, more 
than all, which our Constitution consecrates?. 

Your committee cannot believe that, when the subject is fully in- 
vestigated b}^ Congress, the Federal Government will be so unmind- 
ful of justice, and her obligations to one of the confederacy, even 
upon the hypothesis that she could succeed, as to claim an advantage 
which is derived solely irom the negligence and error of her own 
agent. They therefore beg leave to recommend the following reso- 
lutions: 

Resolved^ That it is desirable to the State of Georgia to have the 
boundary line between her and Florida run and marked as speedily 
as will meet the convenience of the United States. 

Resolved, As the act of Congress of 14th May, 1826, providing for 
the running and marking that line, requires it to be run and marked 



[Doc. No. 50.] 7 

to the point designated as the head of St. Mary's hy the Commis- 
sioners appointed under the third article of the treaty of friendship, 
limits, and navigation, between the United States and Spain, of 
27th October, 1795 ; and, as that line is not, in the opinion of Georgia, 
the true boundary; that Congress be earnestly requested, at the 
present session, to repeal the aforesaid act, and to pass another, au- 
thorizing the line to be run and marked according to the provisions 
of the 2d article of said treaty. 

Resolved^ That, should Congress refuse to make any provision for 
running the aforesaid line, in conjunction with the authorities of 
Georgia, the Governor be authorized and requested to appoint 
commissioners, to be accompanied with a competent surveyors and 
artist, to run and mark the line according to the stipulations con- 
tained in the 2d article of the treatv between the United States and 
Spain, of the 27th October, 1795. 

Resolved^ That the Governor be requested to forward a copy to 
our Senators and Representatives in Congress, to be by them laid 
before the Senate and House of Representatives of the Congress of 
the United States. 

Secretary of State's Office, Georgia, 

Milledgeville^ December 26. 1828. 
The above and foregoing is from the original deposited in this 
office. ApproA^ed by the Governor the 20th instant. 

E. HAMILTON, Secretary. 
43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 3 



GALES & SEATON, 
Printers to House of Reps. 



21st CONGRESS, 
1st Session. 



IN SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES. 

January 11, 1830. 



Read, referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and ordered to be prlnted- 



REPORT OF COMMITTEE 

AND 

RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF GEORGIA, 

Requesting that provision he made hy Congress for running and 
marking the line between that State and Florida. 



In Senate, November 28, 1829. 
The Committee on the state of the Republic, to whom was referred 
that part of the Governor's message which relates to the boundary 
line between the State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida, 
with the accompanying documents, have had the same under their 
consideration, and 

REPORT: 

That it is with extreme regret they learn that the line dividing this 
State from the Territory of Florida is yet unmarked, and still the 
subject of controversy between the State and the United States. That 
it has been the misfortune, and not the fault, of Georgia, that she has 
long been embroiled in disputes respecting her boundary lines, is no 
less true than deprecated by her; and yet, so long as she has been 
urged by imperious duty to contend for her rights, either with the 
United States or any of her sister States, it gives her consolation to 
know, that, in none of these controversies, has she ever subjected her- 
self to the imputation of disregarding the rights of others, or of hav- 
ing refused to listen to the voice of reason or justice. That it is still 
her duty to persevere in the enforcement of her rights until they are 
recognized and established, none will deny. 

The Legislature would be grossly negligent in its duty to the 
people of the State, and especially that portion of them bordering 
immediately upon the line in dispute, were they any longer to delay 
the prosecution of the most rigorous measures to speed this contro- 
verted point to a fair and equitable adjustment. It is high time 
that Georgia should know her boundary lines. That she has a right 
to the occupancy of the land to the true line which separates it from 
the Territory of Florida, as well as the jurisdiction thereof, all must 
admit. That the line to be run directly from the junction of the 
Flint and Chatahoochie rivers to the source or head of the St. 
Mary's river, is tlie true line of division, is as certain as it can be 
made by treaty stipulation, is beyond all question. There really 
ought to be no difficulty in settling the matter. The course of the' 



[17] 2 

line being plainly designated, as also the point of beginning and 
termination specificalh- pointed out. and both being natural points, 
and the description, too. not floating in the uncertain recollection 
of man. but reduced to the greatest possible certainty that language 
can make it, and inserted in an obligation of the most solemn kind 
between independent sovereignties, it would appear to the committee 
to leave no room for controversy. It is useless for this committee 
again to enter into an argument of the question in relation to the 
location of this line; so full and so perfect a view of the same was 
presented, in a report of the Committee on the state of the Eepublic, 
at the last session of the Legislature, to whom that subject was re- 
ferred, that it is only necessary to refer to that report to establish 
the truth and justice of our cause, and fully to sustain the course 
which the State is pursuing in relation to that matter. 

The mere quantity of acres, or strip of land between the two 
lines, independently considered, is unimportant, either to the State 
or the United States, and is not the main question to be considered. 
It is pHncipTe. mere right, for which Georgia contends, and she will 
be satisfied with nothing less. The Legislature has no constitutional 
power to give up or barter away the territory of citizens of the 
State, or any portion thereof, or relinquisli her jurisdiction over the 
same. but. on the contrary, to preserve inviolate the integrity thereof. 
The committee were liopeful that the application and appeal, which 
was so respectfully and directly made to the justice and good sense 
of the Congress of the United States by the Legislature of this 
State, at its last session, would have removed all difficulty on this 
subject, and close this unpleasant and unprofitable controversy. 

The United States can certainly have no wish to do injustice to 
Kny one of the members of the Confederacy: and Georgia, on her 
part, solemnly disclaims all intentions of even a wish to obtain, 
either from the United States or Florida, an acre of land, to which 
her claim is not sanctioned b}^ equity and justice: and her dutj", Ji« 
well as her most earnest desire, is to cultivate the most friendly 
feelings towards the United States, and also towards Florida, and 
would exceedingly regret that she should be reduced to the necessity 
of pursuing any measure that would be calculated for a moment to 
interrupt those good feelings that now so happily subsist between 
them. And your Committee take this occasion to state, that they 
have much confidence in the liberality and justice of the Congress 
of the United States, and the administration of the Government 
thereof: and are. from this consideration, induced to believe, that 
the Avant of time prevented the Congress from acting definitively 
upon the subject at its last session, and not from a disposition to 
disregard the rights of the State, or leave the question still open. 
They are induced, once more, earnestly to appeal to the Legislature 
of the Union, npon this subject, and request that they, at the ensu- 
ing session oi Congress, repeal, or alter and amend, the act passed 
on the 14th day of May. 1826. in relation to the running and mark- 
ing the said line : and make provision for and appoint Commissioners 
on the part of the United States, to act in conjunction with Com- 
missioners to l:»e appointed on the pai"t of Georgia, to trace out and 
plainly mark the line between Georgia, and the Territory of Florida, 
from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie Eivers. to the 
true head or source of the River St. Mary's, according to the in- 



3 . [17] 

tention, letter, and spirit, of the second article of the treaty of 
friendship, limits, and navigation, between the United States and 
Spain, of the 27th of October, 1795, without restriction as to the 
point or mound designated by ^h\ Ellicott, or any other person. 

The Committee, for effecting the object embraced in the foregoing 
report, recommend the adoption of the following resolutions: 

Resolved, That Congress be earnestly requested to repeal, or alter 
and amend, the act of the l-ith of May, 1826, for running out and 
marking the line between Florida and Georgia, and make provision 
for and appoint Commissioners on the part of the United States, 
to act in conjunction with Commissioners to be appointed on the 
part of Georgia, to run and mark the said line agreeable to the 
second article of the treaty between the United States and Spain, 
before referred to, as speedily as will suit the convenience of the 
United States. 

Resolved, That, should Congress, at its ensuing session, refuse to 
make any provision for running the aforesaid line, in conjunction 
with the authorities of Georgia, that his Excellency the Governor 
be authorized and requested, as soon after the adjournment of Con- 
gress, or as soon after as he shall have ascertained that they have 
acted definitively upon the said case, as the same can be done with 
convenience, to appoint Commissioners, with a competent surveyor 
and artist, to run and mark plainly the line aforesaid, according to 
the provisions contained in the second article of the said treaty 
between Spain and the United States, of the 27th October, 1795; 
and that his Excellency the Governor do, in such case, inform the 
President of the United States the time at which the Commissioners 
on the part of Georgia will proceed to mark the said line. 

Resolved, That the Governor be requested to forward a copy of 
this report and resolutions to our Senators and Representatives in 
Congress, to be by them laid before Congress, early in the ensuing 
session, so that ample time may be had to act upon the same. 

Read and agreed to. 

THOMAS STOCKS. President. 
Attest : 

Wm. Y. Hansell, Secretary. 

In the House or Representatives, 

December ISth, 1829. 
Read and concurred in. 

WARREN JOURDAN, Speaker. 
Attest : 
Wm. C. Dawson, Clerk. 

Approved, 19th December, 1829. 

GEORGE R. GILMER, 

Governor. 



1 -gn 



22d Congress, fDoC No . 43.1 Ho. of Reps. 

1st Session. '- 



BOUNDARY BETWEEN GEORGIA AND FLORIDA. 



MESSAGE 

FROM THE 

PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, 

TRANSMITTING 

Ths information required hy a resolution of the House of Representa- 
tives^ of the 19th instant^ in relation to the boundary line between 
the State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida. 



December 20, 1S31. 
Read, and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. 



Washington, December 29, 1831. 

In compliance with the resolution of the House of Representa- 
tives, of the 19th instant, requesting the President of the United 
States to communicate to it " the correspondence between the Gov- 
ernor of Georgia and any department of this Government, in the 
years 1830 and 1831, in relation to the boundary line between the 
State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida," I transmit, here- 
with, a communication from the Secretary of State, with copies of 
the papers referred to. 

It is proper to add, as the letter and resolutions on this subject, 
from the Governor and Legislature of Georgia, were received after 
the adjournment of the last Congress; and as that body, after having 
the same subject under consideration, had failed to authorize the 
President to take any steps in relation to it — that it was my inten- 
tion to present it, in due time, to the attention of the present Con- 
gress by a special message. This determination has been hastened, 
by the call of the House for the information now communicated; 
and it only remains for me to await the action of Congress upon the 
subject. 

ANDREW JACKSON. 



Department of State, 
Washington, December ^%th. 1831. 
The Secretary of State, to whom has been referred, by the Presi- 
dent, a resolution of the House of Representatives, of the 19th of 
this month, requesting the President to furnish that House with a 
copy of any correspondence which may have taken place in the year 
1830 or 1831, between the Executive of Georgia and any department 
of this Government, relative to the boundary line between the State 
of Georgia and the Territorj' of Florida, ha? the honor to transmit, 



2 [Doc. No. 43.] 

herewith, to the President, the copy of a letter under date the 22d 
of March, 1831, from the Governor of Georgia, addressed to the 
President himself upon the subject in question, together with a copy 
of the resolution of the Assembly of Georgia therein referred to; 
which letter and resolution were deposited, by order of the President, 
in this department. 

That communication comprehends all the correspondence, within 
the purview of the resolution of the House of Representatives, which 
is to be found in this office; but an indistinct recollection is never- 
theless entertained here, that the letter of the Governor of Georgia 
was answ^ered by the President, though it does not appear that a 
copy of his letter was kept. 

Respectfullv submitted. 

EDW. LIVINGSTOX. 



ExECUTi\TE Department, 
Georgia, Milledoeville. March 22, 1831. 

Sir: Congress having failed, at its last session, to make provision 
for running the dividing line between Georgia and Florida, the 
Legislature of this State has directed me to cause that line to be run 
by commissioners appointed for that purpose. 

The President is informed that commissioners have accordingly 
been appointed, and received instructions to meet at the town of 
St. Mary's, on the first of May next, and to proceed, without delay, 
to run and plainly mark the line from the junction of the Chatta- 
hoochie and Flint rivers, to the head of St. ^Mary's, agreeably to 
the treaty of 1795, between the United States and Spain. 

The opinions and motives of the Legislature which induced this 
proceeding, are fully explained to the President in the report and 
resolutions of that body, copies of which accompany this communica- 
tion. Since 1827. when it was first discovered that the place fixed 
upon by Ellicott and Elinor, did not truly represent the head of the 
St. Mary's intended by the treaty of 1795, the State of Georgia has 
been continually urging upon the Government of the United States 
the propriety of causing such an examination and survey to be made, 
as would terminate the uncertainty as to the place which ought to 
be ^o considered. 

The State does not desire the acquisition of any territory, and 
claims none but what is believed to be secured to it by the highest 
evidence of title. The obligation, therefore, is imperative upon those 
who administer the Government of the State, to preserve its territory 
inviolate. The boundary described in its Constitution is the same, 
from the junction of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers to the St. 
Mary's, as that which formed its dividin*; line from East Florida 
when Georgia was a colony of Great Britain. By the proclama- 
tion of the King of Great Britain, in 1763. forming the govern- 
ments of East and West Florida, and extending the southern 
boundary of Georgia, that line was described as running from the 
junction of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers to the source of the 
St. Mary's. By the commission granted to Governor Wright, in 
1764, the same line is described as extending to the southernmost 
stream of the St. Mary's. By the definitive treaty of peace of 1783, 
Great Britain ceded to Georgia as an independent State, and as one 



[Doc. No. 43.] 3 

of the parties to that treaty, all the territory whicli belonged to it 
when it ceased to be a colony. The line in question was described 
in that treaty as running from the junction of the Chattahoochie 
and Flint rivers, straight, to the head of the St. Mary's. By the 
term head of the St. Clary's, as used in that treaty, was understood 
the same place which was described in the proclamation of 1763, 
and in the commission to Governor Wright, in 1764, as the source 
or most southern stream of the St. Mary's. The same must be in- 
tended to have been meant by the term the head of the St. Mary's 
in the treaty of 1795, because it corresponds exactly with the descrip- 
tion of the same place in the treaty of 1783, aud because, although 
there were disputes between the United States and Spain, and the 
United States and Georgia, as to the boundary line l)etween that 
State and West Florida, none are believed to have existed as to the 
line between Georgia and East Florida. If, therefore, the place 
fixed upon by Ellicot and Minor does not truly represent the head 
of the St. Mary's, surel)' the United States ought not to insist upon 
its being so considered, especially since Florida has become a part 
of its own territory. 

In communicating to the President, by the request of the Legisla- 
ture, the appointment of commissioners, and the time when they are 
instructed to proceed to run the line from the junction of the Chatta- 
hoochie and the Flint rivers to the head of the St. Mary's. I have 
thought it my duty to present this brief justification of the course 
which has been pursued by the State in ascertaining the extent of her 
territorial rights. 

Verv respectfully, vours, 

GEORGE R. GILMER. 

To the President of the United States. 



The Committee on the State of the RepuMic. to luhom, vjas refei^red 
that fart of the Goveimorh message lohich relates to the houvAat^ 
line between the State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida^ 
with the aecompanying doeuments^ have had the satne under eon- 
sideration, and rej)ort: 

That the deep interest which Georgia has in the question of the final 
and satisfactory settlement of her boundaries, is such as to impose on 
her constituted authorities, the duty of prosecuting the subject to some 
final termination. And at this time, your committee believe, that the 
constituted authorities of this State would be liable to the charge of 
dereliction of duty to her citizens, were they to permit the boimdary 
which separates Georgia from the Territory of Florida, from the 
junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, thence to the head 
of the St. Mary's river, to remain, as it now does, unascertained, and 
not run and marked. 

Your committee, in again presenting a condensed view of the sub- 
ject referred to their consideration, will purposely be very brief, as the 
merits of the question have been so often presented to the Federal 
Government, and particularly in the report and resolutions agreed to 
by the General Assembly of this State, on the 16th day of December, 
1828, which your committee beg may be referred to. as presenting 
most of the evidences and facts on which Georgia claims a final settle- 



4 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

ment of the boundary line between this State and the territory of 
Florida. 

By referring to the charter of Georgia which was granted in the 
year 1732, to certain persons, and its surrender to the King of Great 
Britain in the year 1752, by the trustees, and the proclamation of 
1763, establishing the government of East and AYest Florida, and 
extending the southern boundary of Georgia, and the commission of 
Governor Wright, at which time both Georgia and Florida were 
British Colonies or Provinces, dated the 20th day of January, 1764; 
the only legitimate inference from each of the recited evidences is, 
that the southern line of Georgia was to run from the most southern 
stream of a river St. Mary's, and westward from thence, and conse- 
quently leaving the whole of the head waters of that river within 
the boundary of Georgia ; and every other public document which 
relates to the said boundary, either as a boundary line of the United 
States or the State of Georgia, is in palpable accordance with this 
conclusion, until the year 1800. 

In the year 1795, the Government of the United States and Spain 
concluded a treaty, by the second article of which it was agreed, that 
a line should begin from a point at the junction of the Flint and 
Chattahoochie rivers, and to run from thence to the head of the St. 
Mary's river. Under the provisions of said treaty, commissioners 
were to be appointed to run and plainly mark said line, and commis- 
sioners were accordingly appointed ; and in the year 1800, Mr. Elli- 
cott, the commissioner on the part of the United States, and the com- 
missioner on the part of Spain met, and attempted to run and mark 
the said line, from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, 
to the head of the St. Mary's, but from causes which it is not neces- 
sary to state in detail, the line was not run, but the commissioners 
fixed on a spot near a branch of the river St. Mary's, and erected a 
mound, and agreed that the mound so erected by them near the Oka- 
funoke Swamp, should be taken as the true head of the St. Mary's 
river, and that a line should be run from the junction of the Flint 
and Chattahoochie rivers to said mound, and that it should be taken 
as the true line; provided, if said line did not pass within one mile 
north of said mound, it should be correct to carry it to that distance. 

Your committee, after having recited some of the evidences on 
which Georgia claims that the boundary line between this and the 
Territory- of Florida, have not been either finally or satisfactorily 
settled, take leave to state that, until the year 1819. very little was 
known of the section of country about the head of St. Mary's river. 
The Okafunoke Swamp, in which it has its head, anterior to that time, 
was an almost impenetrable wilderness, and was very little known to 
civilized man. and the explorations made by the authority of the 
Legislature of this State, in the year 1818, were not intended to do 
more than to collect information of a part of the lands and boundary 
line of Georgia. But since that time, the Indian rights of occupancy 
has been extinguished to all the lands in this State, from the junction 
of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, to the head of the St. Mary's 
river, and that section of this State is now generally settled, and the 
country generally known. It is therefore now believed, that it will 
not be difficult or uncertain to ascertain the true head of the St. 
Mary's river. Your committee believe the Legislature will not dis- 
charge a duty it owes to the good citizens of this State, without once 



[Doc. No. 43.] 5 

more asking and requesting the Federal Government to co-operate in 
this desirable object, and have the said line run and plainly marked. 

Your committee have too much confidence in the authorities of the 
General Government to indicate an opinion that the rights of Georgia 
are not attended to from improper considerations. 
. The reports made to Congress by the Judiciary Committees, to 
whom the subject has been referred, one on the 21st day of March, 
1828, and another on the 30th day of January, 1830, have been care- 
fully- examined by your committee ; but as the said reports do not con- 
tain anj^ new evidences of the claim on which the United States main- 
tain that the mound erected by Mr. Ellicott to be truely and carefully 
placed at or near the head of the St. Mary's river; that they have con- 
sidered it improper, at this time, to make any examination of the 
conclusions arrived at by the arguments relied on in said reports. 

In conclusion, your committee are satisfied that it is their duty to 
state, that if the question of the settlement of boundary between 
Georgia and the Territory of Florida is not fully and finally settled 
under the provisions of the resolutions which are attached to this 
report, no further attempts should be made by this State in the way 
now sought to effect the desirable object, but that the question ought 
to be carried for decision before the proper judicial tribunal, and to 
effect the objects embraced in this report, your committee recommend 
the adoption of the following resolutions: 

ResoLved. That it is the opinion of this Legislature, that the divid- 
ing line between Georgia and Florida, ought to be run from the junc- 
tion of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, to the head of the most 
southern branch, or head of the St, Mary's river, and that the said 
line ought to be marked without more or further delay. 

ResoloecL That Congress be earnestly requested, as an act of justice, 
during its next session, to repeal, alter or amend, the act of the 14th 
of May. 1826. which provided for the running of. and marking the 
line dividing Georgia from the Territory of Florida, and to make 
additional and suitable provisions for the appointment of commis- 
sioners on the part of the United States to join commissioners. on the 
part of Georgia, to run and plainly mark the dividing line between 
this State and the territory of Florida, agreeably to the second article 
of the treaty of the 2Tth day of October. 1795. between the United 
States and Spain. 

Resolved, That should commissioners be appointed on the part of 
the United States, during the next session of Congress, to meet com- 
missioners on the part of this State, to run out and mark the dividing 
line between Georgia and the Territory of Florida, that as soon as 
his Excellency, the Governor, shall or may be officially informed of 
the same, that he be. and is hereby empowered and requested to ap- 
point, without delay, a competent commissioner, artist, and surveyor, 
on the part of this State, to meet the commissioners on the part of the 
United States: and that he open a correspondence on the subject with 
said commissioners on the part of the United States, requesting a 
meeting of the commissioners on the part of this State and the United 
States, at the earliest day convenient, for the purpose of discharging 
the duties assigned them, with the least possible delay. 

Resolved, That if the commissioners on the part of the United States 
and Georgia shall meet agreeably to the provisions of the preceding 
resolutions, and shall fail to effect the object of their appointment, 



6 [Doc. No. 43.] 

that it is desirable that they report and recommend terms and condi- 
tions on which the said disputed and unsettled line ought to be fully 
and finally settled; if, therefore, the Federal Government shall give 
authority to the commissioners appointed by said Government, to 
make such recommendation to the said Government, that his Excel- 
lency the Governor be, and is hereby, requested to give to the commis- 
sioners on the part of Georgia, instructions to join in such recom- 
mendation, if they should agree that the same is just and proper. 

Resolved^ That should Congress, at its ensuing session, refuse or 
neglect to make provision for running out and plainly marking said 
line, by the appointment of a commissioner to meet the commissioner 
who may be appointed on the part of Georgia, that his Excellency the 
Governor be, and he is hereby, authorized and requested, as soon after 
the adjournment of the next session of Congress as may be consistent 
to appoint two commissioners, and an artist, and surveyor, to meet, 
as early after their appointment as may be convenient, and run out 
and plainl}^ mark the said line dividing Georgia from the Territory 
of Florida, from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie river to 
the head of the St. Mary's river, agreeably to the second article of a 
treaty between the United States and Spain, of the 22d day of Octo- 
ber, 1795; and that his Excellenc}'^ the Governor do. in such case, 
inform the President of the United States, the time at which the 
commissioners on the part of Georgia will proceed to run out and 
plainly mark the said line. 

Eead and agreed to, November 19, 1830. 

THOMAS STOCKS, 

President. 
Attest: John A. Cuthbert, Secretary. 

In the House of Representatives, read and concurred in. 

ASBUPtY HULL. Speaker. 
Attest: W. C. Duxsok, Clerk. 

Approved, December 16. 1830. 

GEORGE R. GILMER, 

Go veiiwr. 



AVilliamson's Hotel. 

•21st December. 1829. 

Dear Sir: Though still detained in my room, I have made inquiries 
respecting Mr. Ellicot's report; and. knowing that the map accom- 
panying It could only have been wanted at the Treasury, as connected 
with the public surveys adjacent to the line, my inquiry was directed 
to the Land Office. 

Mr. Robert King, who has been the draughtsman attached to that 
office ever since 1803, recollects perfectly well Mr. Ellicott's map of 
the line; that it was deposited in the office, and that Mr. Freeman, 
who was once surveyor general of the public lands south of Tennessee, 
took a copy of it. The original remained in the office till the year 
1812, and for some time later, when Mr. Tiffin, Commissioner of the 
Land Office, lent it, for some public purpose, to the clutirman of a 
committee of Congress, probably a land committee. The map never 
was returned: and, if burnt, it was, together with the records of 
Congress, in the Capitol. You may however inquire from the clerks 



[Doe. No. 43.] 7 

of the two Houses, as 'Sir. Tiffin was commissioner subsequent to the 
capture of Washington, and jSIr. King does not recollect the precise 
date when the map Avas loaned b}- him. 
I beg leave to suggest — 

1. An application to Mr. Graham, that a search may be made in 
his office for the report, which may possibly be there. 

2. A request that he will direct Mr. Freeman's successor to send 
back the copy of the map which he had taken. 

3. That Mr. King's evidence may be perpetuated, as he is old and 
infirm. 

It is possible, though not probable, that when the map, of which I 
have myself no recollection, was obtained from the Department of 
State for the purpose aforesaid. I took the report home to read, and 
neglected to return it. I have lost none of my papers; and, on my 
return to New York. I will make a thorough search. If there, it 
must be bound, and have got mixed with pamphlets; for, as to 
public papers^ they were, as such, all returned when I left Washing- 
ton. 

Respectfullv. vour obedient servant. 

ALBERT GALLATIN. 
The Hon. Joseph M. AA'hite, 

of Florida, in Congress. 



General Land Office, 

M March, 1830. 

Sir : In answer to yotir inquiry respecting the map of the line be- 
tween the Floridas and the X'nited States, called Ellicott's line, I beg 
leave to observe, that, in the summer of 1802, Mr. Thomas Freeman 
(who was surveyor of that line with Mr. Ellicott,) was employed to 
make a map exhibiting the country north of that line, for the use of 
the Treasury- Department, whereon the line was accurately delineated 
as the basis for said map. I was frequently with him during the 
time he was employed on it : and, to the best of m}^ recollection, he 
took it from another which appeared to have been drawn by him as 
surveyor, and which might have been the original. All this was 
previous to m}^ appointment as draughtsman, which was in April, 
1805. At that time, the map by Mr. Freeman was in the office, and 
remained there until loaned by Mr. Tiffin to a committee of Congress, 
or the commissioners appointed to settle the Yazoo claims, (I think 
the latter.) and never has been returned. 

I do not recollect that the original plat signed b}'^ the commission- 
ers appointed to run the line. Avas ever on file W'ith the maps belong- 
ing to the General Land Office, as the copy alluded to was all that 
could ever be wanted in this office. 

It is probable that a copy may be found at the topographical 
bureau of the War Department. 

The journal of Mr. Ellicott, I believe, was published in 1803, with 
tlie map, &c. and may be in the Congress Library. 
I am. sir, vour obedient servant, 

ROBERT KING, 
Drax(ghtsrn<in,' General Land Office. 

The Hon. Joseph M. White, 

of Florida, House of Representatives. 



8 [Doc. No. 43.] 

March 21. 18-2S. 

The Committee on the Judiciary^ to which y)as referred the niessage 
of the President^ of the 22c? January, 1828. transmitting copies of 
comm^unications from the Governor of Georgia, relating to the line 
dividing that State from the Temtory of Florida, report: 

The correspondence between the President and the Governor of 
Georgia, thus referred to the committee, presents the question. What 
is the correct boundary between that State and the Territory of 
Florida ? To enable the House to decide this question, the committee 
beg leave to present to their consideration, a condensed view of the 
evidence in relation to it. 

The charter of Carolina to the lords proprietors, in 1663, extended 
southwardly to the river ]Nfatheo, now called St. John's, supposed, 
in the charter, to be in latitude 31.° and so west, in a direct line, 
as far as the South Sea. 

It appears, by an extract from the charter of Georgia, in 1732, 
that the boundaries were '* all those lands, countries, and territories, 
situate, lying, and being, in that part of South Carolina, in America, 
which lies from the northern stream of a river, commonly called the 
Savannah, all along the sea coast to the southward, unto the most 
southern stream of a certain other great water or river, called the 
Alatamaha, and westward from the heads of the said rivers, respect- 
ively, in a direct line, to the South Seas.'- Before the date of this 
charter to Georgia, by a second charter to Carolina, in 1667, its 
limits had been extended south and westward, as far as the degree 
of twenty-nine inclusive, of northern latitude. The Government of 
Carolina, having been, in its origin, a proprietary one, was, in 1729, 
surrendered by seven out of eight of the proprietors, and afterwards 
by the eighth, and then became a regal one: and the province was 
divided into tlie two Governments of North and South Carolina. 
The order of Council making this division, and fixing the boundaries, 
is not accessible to the committee, nor is it deemed material. 

The trustees of Georgia, in 1752, surrendered the whole territory 
to the King, and the Government was afterwards entirely regal. 

The King, by a proclamation of the 7th October, 1763, annexed to 
the Province of Georgia, all the lands lying between the rivers Alata- 
maha and St. Mary's, and, by his commission to Governor Wright, of 
the 20th January, 1764, declares the boundaries to be on the north by 
the most northern stream of a river, there commonly called Savan- 
nah, as far as the head of said river, and from thence, westward, as 
far as our territories extend; on the east by the sea coast, from said 
river Savannah, to the most southern stream of a certain other river, 
called St. Mary, including all islands within twenty leagues of the 
coast, lying between the rivers Savannah and St. Mary, as far as the 
head thereof; and from thence, westward, as far as our territories 
extend, by the north boundary line of our Provinces of East and 
West Florida. 

By the treaty of peace, in 1783. between the United States and 
Great Britain. \he southern boundary of the United States is thus 
described: -'South, by a line, to be drawn due east from the de- 
termination of the line last mentioned, in the latitude of thirty-one 
decrees north of the equator, to the middle of the river Apalachicola 



[Doc. No. 43.] 9 

or Cataliouchee : thence, along the middle thereof, to its junction 
with the Flint river; thence, straight to the head of St. Mary's river; 
and thence, down along the middle of St. Mary's river, to the 
Atlantic Ocean." 

By the proclamation of 1763, before referred to, the King had de- 
clared that part of the northern boundary of East Florida, which is 
now the subject of inquiry, to be as follows, viz : To the northward, 
by a line drawn from that part of said river ( Apalachicola) where 
the Chatahoochee and Flint rivers meet, to the source of St. Mary's, 
and, by the course of the said river, to the Athintic Ocean. Spain hav- 
ing obtained from Great Britain a cession of the Floridas, without, 
us is believed, any description of limits, but with a knowledge of the 
provisional treaty of November, 178'2, and under what were the 
boundaries of those provinces in the hands of Great Britain, some 
difficulty arose between the United States and Spain, in relation to 
this boundary, which led to the treaty of 27th October, 1795, com- 
monly called the treaty of San Lorenzo el Keal; by the second article 
of which, it was agreed, that the boundary line between the United 
States and the Floridas, shall be designated by a line, beginning on 
the river Mississippi, at the northernmost j^art of the 31st degree of 
latitude north of the equator, which from thence shall be drawn due 
east to the middle of the river Apalachicola or Chatahoochee ; thence, 
along the middle thereof, to its junction with the Flint; thence, 
straight to the head of St. Mary's river; and thence, down the middle 
thereof, to the Atlantic Ocean. 

It was provided by the 3d article of that treaty, that a commis- 
?ioner and surveyor, to be appointed by each of the contracting 
parties, should run and mark the boundary, according to the stipu- 
lations of the ^d article, above recited. It Avas further stipulated, 
that they should make plats, and keep journals of their proceedings, 
which should be considered as part of the convention, find have the 
same force as if they were inserted therein. In conformity with 
this stipulation, Andrew EUicott was appointed commissioner, and 
Thomas Freeman surveyor, on the part of the United States, for the 
purpose of running the line mentioned in the 2d article. This ap- 
pointment was made in May, 1796: it appears from a letter of the 
commissioner, dated 22d March, 1800, to the then Secretary of State, 
that a report, of Avhat had been done, would soon 'be completed; but 
that report, if made, is not now, as far as the committee are informed, 
to be found. It appears from the same letter, that our commissioner 
experienced great difficulty and embarrassment in the execution of 
the duty assigned to him. "from the Indians, and, he intimatei=., at the 
instigation of others. The journal of Ellicott was published in 1803. 
It appears that the commissioners did not run and mark the line from 
the junction of Chatahoochee and Flint rivers, to the head of 
St. Mary's; but they designated a point, which should bo taken as 
the one. to or neai- which a line should be drawn from Flint river, 
which, when drawn, was to be final; provided, it passed not less than 
one mile north of a certain mound, erected by them: but if, on experi- 
ment, it should be found to pass within less "than a mile north of said 
mound, it should be corrected to carry it to that distance. This 
mound is near the Okefenoke Swamp. It appears from a report of 
John McBride, a surveyor, appointed by Georgia, in the year 1827, 
that there is a stream^, called by him the South Branch of the 
St. Mary's, much farther south than the one considered the head 



10 [Doc. No. 43.] 

branch of tliat river, by the xVmericaii and Spanish commissioners; 
and he sa\>. that both it^ length, its vohime of water, and general 
direction, coincide in favor of the South Branch. It api^ears, by a 
document referred to as 23art of tliis report, marked A. that, im'der 
a resolution of the Senate of Georgia, in 18i8. the Governor of that 
Stat« appointed commissioners to examine and report whether Elli- 
cott's mound was the true head of the St. Mary's; and from the letter 
of the Governor, in 1819. to the Secretary of "\Var. it appears, that the 
commissioners had reported, that, after a careful examination, they 
found the head of St. Mary's to agree with the report made by ]\Ir. 
EUicot. Two of the commissioner.•^. in a paper referi'ed to as part 
of this report, marked P>.. think it probable that they may have been 
misled by their guide — assigning as the reasons of that impression: 
1st. that they recollect to have seen what appeared to them, through 
thick brush wood, to be a lively little stream, emptying in through 
the opposite or right bank of the southern or middle fork of the 
St. Mary's: which, beine: pointed out to the pilot, he replied, that the 
branch they were pursumg was the right one: and. "id. by the repre- 
sentation given by the survey of McBride. After this review of the 
evidence, it will be seen by the House, that the question is. "N^Hiat is 
the head or source of the St. Mary's? for the other end of the line, 
to wit: the junction of the Chatahoochee and Flint rivers, being un- 
contested, so soon as the head of the St. Mary's is ascertained, all 
difficulty ceases as to the boundary. The committee are of opinion, 
upon the whole A-iew of the case, that the point designated by the 
American and Spanish commissioners, ought to be considered as the 
head of St. Mary's. They consider the solution of the question to 
depend on this. Avhich stream is to be considered the true St. Mary's 
river, according to reputation, and the understanding and acquies- 
cence of the parties concerned? As far back as 1800. the commis- 
sioners of the two Governments considered, upon examination, what 
is now called the North Branch, as the St. Mary's: and the Georgia 
commissioners, in 1819, concur with Mr. Ellicott. as to the name of 
that river: although another river unites with this, which vents more 
head Avater and is longer, yet. if it were not called, or known by the 
name of St. Mary's, these circumstances Avould not alter the case. 
The committee in:^er. that it was not so called, or known, from these 
circumstances: 1st. that the commissioners of two Governments Avere 
appointed to settle and decide a contested question of boundary: to 
do this, the head of the St. Mary's being one of the termini, it became 
their duty to seek for information from every source, accessible to 
them, as to which stream was the St. Mary's, and what Avas its head. 
Having fixed upon a particular stream, as being the true riA^er, and 
designated a point as its source, and this being matter of notoriety, 
Georgia acquiesced, without objection, as far as the committee are 
informed, till 1818: and then the report of their oAvn commissioners 
coincided with Ellicott's designation, and that. too. though they had, 
as their pilot, as the committee belicA-e. the A-ery person on Avhose 
suggestion they had been appointed. In this report. Georgia acqui- 
esced, as far as the committee is informed, until recently. As far as 
the nature of this unsettled country Avill admit of reputation as to the 
names of its streams, these facts may be considered as probably the 
best cA-idence which was the St. Mary's riA-er, and the head of that 
river, as intended in the several State papers above recited. There 
is an example mentioned in one of the printed documents, which Avill 



[Doc. No. 43.] 11 

illustrate the idea of the committee. It is now believed to be a 
geogTa])liical fact, that the JMissouri is a longer stream than the 
Mississippi, and \vc believe vents more water; and yet, as it never 
has been called by the name of Mississippi, if we were now called 
upon to decide what was the head of the Mississippi, we should take, 
not the source of the Missouri, though it unites with the other stream, 
but the source of what is, and has been called the Mississi])pi. It is 
not intended to say that the case in question is as palpable; but, after 
settling the principle, that, in ascertaining the head of a stream of 
a given name, w^e must inquire Avhere two streams unite, not which 
is the longest, or vents the most water, but which has been called 
and known by the given name, we are then to decide, upon the best 
evidence in our power, as to that fact; and we think the evidence is 
in favor of the stream designated by Ellicott. 

Resolved., therefore^ as the opinion of the committee, that, in 
running the boundary line between Georgia and Florida, the point 
designated by the Commissioners under the 3d article of the treat}'^ 
of 1795. between the United States and Spain, ought to be the 
termination of the line from the junction of the Chatahoochee and 
Flint rivers. 



(A.) 

In Senate, \2th December^ 1818. 

Resolved, That his Excellency the Governor be requested to ap- 
point two fit and proper persons, to proceed, without delay, to 
ascertain the true head of the St. Mary's river; and, if it shall appear 
that the mound thrown up by Mr. Ellicott and the Spanish deputa- 
tion, is not at the place set forth in the treaty with Spain, that they 
make a special report of the facts to the Governor, who shall there- 
upon communicate the same to the President of the United States, 
accompanied with a request that the lines may be run agreeably to 
the true intent and meaning of the aforesaid treaty. 

Avd it is further resolved. That the Governor order out a suitable 
detachment of militia to protect the said commissioners in the per- 
formance of their duty. 

Approved: Vi)th Dec^niber, 1819. 



Executive Department. Georgia, 

Milledgeville, 11th Fehrnary, 1819. 

Sir : I take the liberty to call your attention to the subject of 
the contemplated line between this State and the Province of East 
Florida, which you no doubt recollect is expected to be run this 
Spring by the General Government. 

Preparations are making to commence surveying that section of 
country in a short time: it is, therefore, very desirable that the line 
should be defined as early as possible. 

The Legislature of this State, at their late session, having received 
satisfactory information that the mound thrown up by Mr. Ellicott 
and the Spanish deputation, on the Okefenoke .Swamp, is not the true 
head of St. Mary's river, as contemplated in the treaty with Spain, 

43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 4 



12 [Doc. No. 43.] 

directed nie to appoint commissioners to ascertain the fact, and to 
communicate the result to the President of the United States, with 
a request that the line might be laid out agreeably to their report. 
Majors General Floyd and Thompson, and Brigadier General Black- 
shear, have been appointed to, and are now engaged in, the per- 
formance of that duty. Their repoit shall be transmitted to you as 
soon as I receive it. 

I have every reason to believe that the head of that river will be 
found at least twenty miles south of the point agreed on by Mr. 
Ellicott and the Spanish commissioners. Should this conjecture 
prove to a fact, the State of Georgia, will be entitled to the land 
within that boundary", according to the treaty with Spain. In any 
event, it is of great importance that one of those lines should be 
completed as soon as circumstances will justify the measure. 

Enclosed. I hand you a resolution of the Legislature on the subject. 
AVith high respect, I am, sir, your obedient servant, 

WM. RABUN. 
The Hon. John C. Calhoun. 

Secretary of War, Washington City. 



Executive Department, Georgia, 

Milledgeville, 2>d March, 1819. 
Sir: On the 17th ultimo, I had the honor to address you on the 
subject of the contemplated line between this State and the Province 
of East Florida. I stated that the Legislature of this State had 
directed me to appoint commissioners to ascertain the true head or 
source of the St. Mary's river, and I promised to forward their 
report to you as soon as the same was received. The commissioners 
have returned, and reported, that, after a careful examination, 
they found the head of that river to agree with the report made by 
Mr. Ellicott, and prove, beyond the possibility of doubt, that the 
information received by the Legislature of this State relative to 
that subject was incorrect. I flatter myself that directions will be 
forwarded to Mr. Lumpkin, immediately, to close that line, according 
to the treaty with Spain. And. if the General Government can 
afford us assistance in guarding the surveyors who will be engaged 
in lajdng out the country, it will be acknowledged as a great 
accommodation. 

I am, with high respect. 

Your obedient servant, 

WM. EABUN. 
Hon. J. C. Calhoun, 

Secretary of War. 



(B.) 



In the year 1817, Capt. William Cone, tlien a member of the 
Legislature of Georgia, represented, on his own knowledge of the 
St. Mary's river that Mr. Ellicott had mistaken its true head or 
source; and that an accurate survey would establish the fact, that 
the head or source of the middle fork or branch, (perhaps then called 



[Doc. No. 43.] 13 

the South Branch) which was twenty miles south of Mr. Ellicott's 
Mound, would be found to be the true source of the St. Mary's river, 
and therefore the true point of demarcation between the vState of 
Georgia and the then Spanish province of East Florida. The Gov- 
ernor of Georgia was authorized, by the Legislature, to appoint 
commissioners to ascertain the truth of the facts alleged by Captain 
Cone. The undersigned, with Brigadier General David Blackshear, 
were appointed, and specially instructed by the Governor of Georgia. 
They employed Captain Cone as a pilot, and, with a competent 
surveyor, caused to be measured (beginning at or near the point 
designated by Ellicott as the head of the St. Mary's river) the dis- 
tance from that point, by the meanders of the northwest branch, 
to its junction with the stream or branch represented by Cone to be 
the true source of the St. Mary's, and up the left bank of the latter 
branch, until the commissioners reached an extensive swamp, into 
which the pilot, with two of the Commissioners (the undersigned) 
penetrated about half a mile, and saw no water or water channel. 
Capt. Cone was then directed by the commissioners to pass entirely 
across the swamp, (to the pine barren beyond the swamp,) who, on 
his return, reported that there was no stream of water or water 
channel in the swamp; and that we had reached the head of the 
branch to which he had referred in the information given by him 
to the Legislature. On a comparison of the length of the two streams, 
it was found that the latter, from its junction with the other to the 
swamp above referred to, was much the shortest; and the com- 
missioners consequently reported in favor of the former as the head 
or source of the St. Mary's river. 

It is, however, more than probable that the commissioners may 
have been misled bj^ the inadvertency of Captain Cone, who pro- 
fessed to be intimately acquainted with the geography of that part 
of the country, and on whom they were instructed to rely, who may 
have been diverted from the principal stream, by mistaking a branch 
of it. And we, the undersigned, are inclined to this belief; first, be- 
cause we recollected to have seen, a short distance beloAv the swamp 
to which we have referred, what appeared to us, through thick brush- 
wood, to be a lively little stream, emptying in through the opposite 
or right bank of the southern or middle fork of the St. Mary's, which 
was pointed out to the pilot; who replied, that the branch we were 
then pursuing was the right one; and because of the representation 
given bj^ the survey of McBride. 

JOHN FLOYD, 
WILEY THOMPSON. 

Felruary 29th, 1828. 

March 3, 1829. 

3Ir. White submitted the follotving letter from D. B. Douglass, relat- 
ing to the houndary line hetxoeen the State of Georgia and the Ter- 
ritory of Florida. 

West Poi>'t, llth February, 1829. 

Dear Sir : I was duly honored with your note of the 20th ultimo, 

requesting information respecting the official report of Mr. Ellicott, 

as commissioner for executing the treaty of 1795; and I have since 

employed myself, as opportunity offered, in searching among the 



14 [Doc. No. 43.] 

correspondence and documents in my possession, Avith w vie\v of com- 
plying, if possible, with 3'our request. 

I iim sorr}' to say that, as regards the report, or any of the charts 
or other documents connected with it, my search has. thus far, proved 
ineffectual. I find it very often referred to in different parts of the 
correspondence, particularly that with Mr. Jefferson and Mr. jSIadi- 
son, but no where in such a way as to indicate the grounds, or any of 
the subject matter of the report ; and the most I can do, therefore, is 
to transcribe a fcAv extracts from letters in which the report is spoken 
of, for the mere sake of historical truth, and in the hope that possibly 
they may throw a ray of liglit upon your further researches. 

1. Speaking of his astronomical observations, Avhich he had ar- 
ranged for publication, Mr. Ellicott. in a letter (believed to have 
been (addressed to Mr. Jefferson, dated 17th September, 1800, says: 
^^The Astronomical Journal is very lengthy., hut u'ill he of no use to 
the public till accompanied with the charts of the line. When these 
can he had is uncertain, as the originals were annexed to the report., 
and I had not time to take copies^ This was written about four 
months after his return. 

2. Februaiy 5th, 1801, in a letter to ]Mr. Jefferson, he says: " Ever 
since I heard of the burning of the Treasury Department, I have been 
alarmed on account of the maps, charts., ami plans, annaced to the re- 
port respecting our southern boundary, as I had not the privilege of 
taking copies, and they could not he replaced hut by sending to 
Madrid.'''' And again : " The report., by the third article of the treaty 
between the United States and his Catholic Majesty., loas ' to become 
a part of the original compact, and equally binding on both nations,^ 
and therefore equally entitled to the same publicity, hut I do not see 
that the President has taken notice of it in any of his messages to the 
two Houses.^^ 

3. In another letter, dated May, 1801, he says: " The publication 
of the fifth volume of the Trmvioctions of our Philosophical Society, 
will be delayed for want of the charts, or the copies of them, annexed 
to the report respecting our soutJiem boundni^j. Those charts are 
the originals, and I intended to hare replaced, them by copies done in 
a better style, but in this I have been dinappoinfed.'''' 

4. In another, dated June 4th, 1801, he adds, to the same effect: 
" The want of those references and charts will delay, for some, 
months, the publication of the ffth volume of our Philoi<ophical 
Transactions, the letter pre^ of tchich will he completed, this week. 
If I had supposed that those papers, or copies of them, would have 
been withheld till this time, I should have endeavored to obtain, 
through the Spanish Minister, copies of those sent to his Court.'''' 

5. It appears from what follows that Mr. Ellicott must have been 
called to Washington soon after the date of the preceding extract, 
for the purpose of transcribinjj the charts, and of executing a fair 
copy for the State or Treasury Department. On the 18th of August, 
he thus writes, (still to Mr. Jefferson:) '"'• Immediately after my re- 
turn from the city of Washi?igton, I began the reduction of mi/ charts 
to a scale of eight inches to a. mile, [qu. eight miles to an inch? ] which 
/ find ivill be as small as they can he reduced, and at the same time 
retain all the waters and bends or crooks of the rivers.'''' 



[Doc. No. 43.] 15 

6. On the -ttli of September, he reports the progress of the large 
map to the Secretary of the Treasury, and on the 10th October re- 
ports it finished. In a letter to Mr. Jefferson, of the same date, he 
saj^s : " It comprehends the Mississippi from the mouth of the Ohio 
to the gulf of Meacico^ the p)'ovinee of West Florida^ and the whole 
south.evn houndary of the United States^ accompanied xoith thirty- 
two pages of majiuscript ir/marks on tlie navigation of the rivers, 
proper positions for miUj^ary works, ctv;.'' And again : " / am. anxious 
to have it forwarded as soon as possible; hut from the size of the map, 
being upwards of six feet north and south, and the sam.e east and 
west, I fear it would be diffcidt to find a jierson willing to take 
charge of it, unless it was made his particular business^ 

7. On the 31st December, 1801, in forwarding it to Mr. Gallatin, 
he Avrites as follows: "/ hane forwarded by the bearer, Captain 
Duane, the map of the Mississippi, from the mouth of the Ohio to 
the gidf of Mexico, to which is added the south boundary of the 
United States, and the whole of West Florida. In examining the 
map, it will be necessary to have reference to the manuscript expla- 
nation, which was forioarded to the President some time ago.^'' 
* * * * '"''Not having time to take a copy of the map, I wish no person 
may be (dloired- that priinlege till I hare time to do it myself ^ 

Other extracts might be furnished, of a similar character, down to 
the date last quoted, but from that time forth, I lincl no distinct ref- 
erence to the subject, nor to the affairs of the commission, in an}^ way, 
except in the settlement of the accounts. 

The conclusion, T think, is irresistible, from these extracts, and 
from the whole face of the correspondence, that Mr. Ellicott made 
his report in due form, immediately after his return, and that an au- 
thentic copy was rendered also to the Spanish Government, which 
implies, if I am not deceived, that it was the joint report of the two 
Commissioners. That it was received and accredited on the part of 
the United States' Government, " as contaliiirig the results of the 
demarcation of the souther)) boundary,'^'' might be shown from many 
parts of the correspondence, particularly the letter of Mr. Madison, 
dated November IStli, 1801, from which the underscored words are 
quoted. 

If there v:as any deficiency, then, in the legal execution of the 
treaty, it is clear to my mind that it must regard some merely diplo- 
matic form, or, at all events, that it does not vitiate anv part of Mr. 
Ellicott's work. 

What has become of this report, you Avill inquire, since no remains 
of it are to be found in the Department of State? From personal 
communications with Mr. Ellicott during his life time, I am fidly 
persuaded that they were destroyed by fire; but at what time, or in 
what manner. I cannot now say: the particulars, if they were ever 
communicated to me, have escaped my recollection; but I distinctly 
remember hearing Mr. Ellicott. on more than one occasion, bitterly 
lament the destruction of the docmnents and drawings, which had 
cost him so much labor, and with the execution of which he had so 
much reason to be satisfied. "Whether all the papers were involved 
in the same fate I cannot say, (have you sounded the Treasury De- 
partment?) nor do I know whether the originals were retained or 



16 [Doc. No. 43.] 

restored after the fair copy was made. I think the latter was made 
for the Treasury Department, and that the former must have be- 
longed to the Department of State. There is a possibilitj^, however, 
that the originals were retained by Mr. Ellicott; and if so, his son, 
in the western part of this State, must know something of them. 
I have already written to him for information, and as soon as it is 
received, will lose no time in communicating it; and I assure you 
it will afford me great pleasure to add any thing to the little I have 
as yet gleaned for you. 

I just recollect that Colonel Gadsden once borrowed a large manu- 
script chart of the St, Mary's from Mr. Ellicott. I presume it was 
returned; but it furnishes another link in our little chain of infor- 
mation, which may be of some assistance. 

I remain, very sincerely, yours. 

Colonel White. " D. B. DOUGLASS. 

Documents relating to the boundary between Florida and Georgia, 
accompanying the Presidents Message at the commencement of 
the \st session of the 2Qth Congress. 

Department of War, 

7th November, 1826. 

Sir : I have the honor to infoiTn you, that, by virtue of the power 
vested in the President of the United States, by act of Congress, 
approved May 4th, 1826, and v/hich provides for the nmning and 
marking the line dividing the State of Georgia from the Territory 
of Florida, the President has appointed you a commissioner, to act 
in conjunction with a commissioner to be appointed by the consti- 
tuted authorities of the State of Georgia, in nmning and marking 
said line. The act of Congress itself, defining the beginning and 
termination of the line, and the direction in which it is to be run, I 
enclose to you, herewith, a volume of acts of Congress which contains 
the act aforesaid, at pages thirty and thirty-one, for your govern- 
ment. 

Your compensation will be the same as that allowed by the State 
of Georgia to her commissioner, and which is stated by Governor 
Troup, in his letter to this department of the 26th October, to be 
" eight dollars per day, including necessary expenses." 

You will, should this appointment be accepted, signify the same to 
the department, and repair immediately to Slilledgeville in Georgia, 
and state to his Excellency Governor Troup, your readiness to enter 
upon the duties embraced in this trust. 

You will be particular in keeping a regular and correct journal of 
your proceedings: and this, together with your map and field notes, 
you will forward, signed by yourself and the commissioner who may 
be appointed on the part of Georgia, to this department. 

I have the honor to be. 

Your most obedient servant, 

JAMES BARBOUR. 
To Thomas M. Randolph, Sen. Esq. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 17 

Albemarle, Nov. 12, 182(5. 

Sir: I had the satisfaction, late yesterday evening, to receive a 
communication from your department, under date of the 7th instant, 
with your signature, announcing to me that the President had 
appointed me a commissioner, to act in conjunction with a commis- 
sioner to be appointed by the constituted authorities of the State of 
Georgia, for running and marking the line dividing that State from 
the Territory of Florida. For this unexpected honor, I at present 
only return my very sincere and most respectful thanks to yourself, 
hoping to have the further honor of making my acknowledgments 
to the President, when I shall have the good fortune to have fulfilled 
his commission to his satisfaction. I should be unworthy of the 
respect shown me in this matter, if I were to accept the commission 
precipitately and inconsiderately, without any instruction from the 
department entrusted with the execution of this law, or any intima- 
tion of the President's views with regard to the manner of proceed- 
ing in the case. The President's perfect knowledge of the infallible 
geometrical principles, according to which such a work must be per- 
formed, makes me more anxious to learn what his thoughts are as 
to the plan of the technical and scientific processes requisite. My 
idea, in the very first moment, was to propose to the Commissioner 
of Georgia to have the latitude and longitude of the junction of the 
rivers Chattahoochie and Flint determined with precision, and also 
that of the point designated as the head of the St. Mary's river by 
the Commissioners under the treaty with Spain of 1795. That done 
to the satisfaction of both, then for them to separate and commence 
running and marking the line from opposite extremities at the same 
time, until they meet in a middle point; the latitude and longitude 
of which should also be determined with the utmost precision; and 
the line is, I believe not westward and eastward only, but crosses 
many fractional parallels of latitude; if it should not extend to a 
degree. Afterwards, if required by either, that each commissioner 
should run over again that part of the line run by the other. All 
elevations and depressions of the surface should of course be accu- 
rately measured, and such notice taken, chorographical and topo- 
graphical, as can be done, en passant. If I did not know the consid- 
erate disposition of the personage to whom I have now the honor of 
addressing myself, T should not venture to ask if it is likely that the 
President will appoint a surveyor himself, or will leave that to the 
discretion of the Commissioner, in faith that, if he should find it 
requisite, the President will adopt his opinion, which would entitle 
the person so engaged by him to such compensation as Georgia may 
grant to her survej^or on this occasion. The surveyor should under- 
stand taking latitudes and longitudes as well as running out courses 
and measuring distances accurately; and should have fit instruments 
for the former purpose besides. I cannot refrain from suggesting 
that the persons to be employed as chain carriers, on such an occa- 
sion, ought not, perhaps, to be taken all from the State; and, of 
course, that an authority to the Commissioner for engaging elsewhere 
the requisite assistants, and defraying their traveling expenses, might 
not meet the disapprobation of the President. 

I am sir, &c. 

TH. M. EANDOLPH, Sen. 

James Barbour, Esq. cSjc. 



18 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Departaient of War, 

nth November, 1826. 
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of 
the 12th instant, and have submitted the same to the President. The 
President sees no exception to your suggestion, as to the mode of pro- 
ceeding in the execution of the trust reposed in you as Commissioner. 
A surveyor will be appointed by the President, and directed to report 
to the Commissioners at Milledgeville. Upon him, under the direc- 
tion of the Commissioners, the duty will devolve of procuring the 
necessary attendance in chain-carriers, &c. 

I will issue a requisition in your favor, to be remitted to you, at 
Everettsville. by the Treasurer, for three hundred dollars, under the 
provision of the first section of the act concerning the disbursements 
of the public money, for which you will be held accountable on the 
settlement of your account for salarj^ as Commissioner. 

I have the honor to be. &c. 

JAMES BARBOUR. 
To Tho:mas Manx Randolph, Sen. Esq. 



North Milton, in Albemarle, Va. 
Near Everettsville P. 0. Nov.^'l. 1826. 
Sir: I have this moment had the honor to receive the letter from 
your department, of date 17th instant. 

I hope I shall be pardoned for soliciting to have the favor done me 
of informing the Governor of Georgia, in the first communication 
made him on this subject, that, on Monday, November 13th, I held 
myself ready to obey orders from your department relative to this 
commission. It has been my main business since to revive in my 
memory the information requisite for fulfilling the object well, even 
in the case that the President might not have thought it necessary to 
appoint a surveyor; which determination is entirely satisfactory to 
me, independent of the high and willing deference to his judgment, 
by no means new in my mind. 

If the clerk in your department, who encloses to me at Everettsville 
the requisition on the Treasury, mentioned in the letter of the 17th, 
would take the trouble to, inform me who the Surveyor is, and when 
he is likely to leave Washington for Milledgeville, it would be thank- 
fully received. 

I have the honor to be, sir, &c. 

TH. M. RANDOLPH, Sen. 
James Barbour, Esq. 

Secretary^ c&c. 



Department of War, 

November 23, 1826. 
Sir : In reply to your letter of the 22d instant, I have the honor to 
inform you that a requisition in your favor was issued on the day of 
the date of my last letter, and that a note accompanied it, requesting 
it of the Treasury Department to remit the amount, to wit, $300, to 
you at Everettsville, which, it is presumed, has been done. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 19 

Since my letter of the I7th instant, and on further reflection, it is 
determined to leave the selection of a Surveyor to you. You will, 
therefore exercise your discretion in appointing a competent person, 
and, through him, the necessary attendants. His compensation will 
be at the i"ate of 5 dollars a day, whilst actually employed, and his 
necessary expenses borne. His account, both for the time in which he 
may be engaoed in the service, and for liis expenses, will be accom- 
panied by your certificates, as Commissioners, of its correctness. You 
will regard the appropriation made by Congress in carrying into effect 
this trust, and in no case exceed it. It is desirable that ever}' atten- 
tion be paid to making the undertaking economical, and as much be- 
low the appropriation as possible. 

Governor Troup has been already advised of your appointment. 

I have the honor to be, &c. 

JAMES BARBOUR. 
To THo:vrAS jMaxn RAXooLrii. Sen. Esq. 

6 p. M. December 16, 1826. 

Sir: I had the honor of addressing a letter to j^ou at a somewhat 
earlier hour of this day, since which I have ascertained that I shall be 
disappointed entirely in my hope of getting a cop}' of the treaty made 
between the United States and Spain at San Lorenzo el Real, on 27th 
October, 1795; and also of what is much more important to me, a 
copy of the report made by the commissioners appointed under the 
third article of the said treaty, " designating " a point as the head of 
the St. Mary's river, which is the eastern extremity of the boundary 
line to be run. The term " designate " from the first moment, con- 
vinced me that I could not proceed without the documents here men- 
tioned, but I u.nluckily thought I was very sure of procuring them 
immediately, yet have failed there and elsewhere, so as to be compelled 
to ask the favor of you to order them to be sent on to me at Richmond 
by the first mail after this has arrived. The term " designate " being 
a little vague. I know not whether the point constituting the eastern 
extremity of the line may have been marked in some permanent way, 
or only described as the head spring, at the intersection of a certain 
meridian and parallel, which may not correspond with the result of 
my observations and calculations; in which case, another head spring 
being nearer to them, the Commissioners may be at a loss. If the 
expression of the treaty should in fact be vague, as I have supposed 
possible, and the report should not have completely removed the diffi- 
culty, I beg to have instructions as to the ground I am to take in the 
conference with the other Commissioner. AYithin an hour I have been 
informed who he is, and where he resides, viz: at the mouth of St. 
Mar}''s. in the town of Darien, which information creates a little 
doubt where I shall find him so as to be on the line by the 19th Jan- 
uary. I have only to repeat my assurances of all possible efforts to 
be expeditious, accurate, economical, and accommodating to the other 
party, in everything relating to my mission. 
I have the honor to be, sir, yours, &c. 

TH. M. RANDOLPH, 

Commissioner^ (&c. 

James Barbour, Esq. 

Seci'etary of War^ (&c. 



20 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Department of War, 

236? December, 1826. 
Sir: I have had the honor to receive your two letters of the 16th 
inst. In regard to all the details having reference to the survey, 
whether these relate to the selection of a surveyor or other matters 
connected with the execution of the trust confided to you, they are 
referred by the President to your agency and discretion. I have ad- 
dressed a note to the Secretary of State, requesting the copies of the 
treaty of San Lorenzo el Real, of the 2Tth October, 1795, and the 
report of the Commissioners apointed under the third article of said 
treaty. The moment these are prepared and received they will be 
forwarded to you, directed to Milledgeville, in Georgia. 
I have the honor, &c. 

JAMES BARBOUR. 
To Thomas M. Randolph. Esq 



Milledgeville, Feh. ^d, 1827. 

Sir: I arrived here yesterday, in eighteen days from Richmond, 
which place I could not leave earlier than about noon of January 14th, 
from a variety of circumstances beyond my control. Indeed, the ac- 
counts of Indian disturbances on the line between Georgia and East 
Florida, by rendering it doubtful, for a short time, whether the Com- 
missioners could proceed in their route, if arrived, seem to me fully 
to justify the short delay I made, in weather of almost unexampled 
severity as to cold, while suffering an indisposition infinitely the most 
serious for eleven years back. 

I found lying at the post office here a packet for me containing, 
relative to the claim of Baley for Indian rations, several papers, to 
the subject of which I shall devote a very particular attention before 
I leave Georgia, and shall forward a report containing all the infor- 
mation I can obtain, and my opinion as soon as the duty of running 
the line will permit me. The important packet, containing the papers 
from the Department of State, mentioned in the communication from 
that over which you preside, dated December 23d, has yet not reached 
me. The report of the Commissioners appointed under the third ar- 
ticle of the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real is a document without which 
these Commissioners cannot well proceed. Since I had the honor 
last to address the department. I have seen that treaty, and have pro- 
cured a copy of A. Ellicott's journal, from which I have the first in- 
formation that the two extremities of the line to be run have been 
geographically determined, and the eastern, which was not certainly 
indicated by the treaty, actually marked, so as to be readily and surely 
discoverable at this time. But I have no evidence that the report 
made jointly by the two Commissioners, which, by a provision in the 
treaty, was to make a part of it, and, of course, is iioav binding upon 
the United States and Georgia, does correspond fully with what is 
stated in the journal. Still I cannot entertain a doubt about that 
correspondence, as the journal Avas prepared for the press after the 
report had been received and acknowledged by the two Governments. 
Upon finding that the packet expected in consequence of the communi- 
cation to me from the Department of War. of December 23d, had not 



[Doc. No. 43.] 21 

arrived, I immediately inquired of the Governor here whether the 
State or any individual possessed the report in question, and am in- 
formed that it cannot be procured here. On that occasion, I found 
that the journal of the United States' Commissioner, Ellicott, was 
here considered as sufficiently authentic, and that it was expected I 
should proceed, " in conjunction with the representative of the con- 
stituted authorities of Georgia," to run a straight line from the mound 
thrown up by the two Commissioners at the outlet of the waters of 
the Okefenoke swamp into the St. Mary's river, to the junction be- 
tween the Chattahoochie and Flint branches of the Apalachicola 
river, which line was to constitute the permanent boundary between 
the State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida. The Commis- 
sioner for Georgia is at his residence in Darien, one hundred and 
seventy miles from this place. I shall set out for that place on Sun- 
day or Monday next, my horses requiring that much rest before I 
can resume my journey, with certainty of the performance from them 
which is requisite. I have only to assure the department that there 
shall be no want of diligence or fidelity on my part upon the occasion ; 
but I cannot omit to remark that the expense of the work must be 
greatly increased from the necessity of proceeding without money, 
there being only eighty dollars in my hands at present. If the report 
of the Commissioners in 1800 should not reach me in time, I shall be 
under the necessity of proceeding by EUicott's journal, but shall be 
ver}^ exact in the application of the information it contains, as a very 
little deviation might leave on the Georgia side of the line some of the 
most valuable parts of the great Okefenoke swamp ; in which, besides 
its capacity to undergo general draining, there are some of the most 
fertile lands of all the south, appearing like islands, or rather oases, in 
the marshy desert. Nothing requisite shall be neglected so as to allow 
of any disagreement between that terrestrial arc of a circle, which is 
already the geographical line, and the future boundary of jurisdic- 
tion, its constituent, which is now to be traced and marked. The 
eastern extremity is considered here to be in latitude 30° 34' 48". 
I am not yet informed what means are contemplated by the Georgia 
party for correcting the compass line, so as to ensure its correspond- 
ence with the terrestrial arc ; but I cannot hear of any astronomical 
instruments for the purpose being in their possession, nor does it 
seem to be expected here that any such means will be used. I do not 
pretend to be a practical astronomer, having never had it in my power 
to procure the necessary instruments to qualify m3^self ; but I have 
a sufficient acquaintance with the theory of the science to enable me 
to detect all errors, and, of course, to guard against them. Nothing 
whatever, in the guise of advantage, or of the still greater temptation, 
relief, could induce me to undertake what I did not feel an entire 
consciousness of the capacity to perform. If I had escaped malicious 
insinuations, predictions, and constructions, I should have been sur- 
prised, in the actual state of our public morals. It shall be my care 
to ensure the falsity of that future malice which I must as certainly 
incur as I live. 

Very respectfully, 

Your most obedient humble servant, 

THOS. M. RANDOLPH. 
The Secretary of War. 



22 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Dakiex, (ieorgia, Fch. 14, 1827. 
Sik: I liJive the honor to inform you that, after waiting at Mill- 
edgeville from Thursday 1st to Thursday 8th instant, in the hope of 
receivinir a despatch containin*r the report of Andrew Ellicott and 
Don Estevan ^Vlinor. made to Government by the former in 1800, 
which still appears to me to be the only authentic document upon 
which the present Commissioners for runuiii;>: the same boundarj' line 
can proceed, with entire satisfaction to themselves, as the result of 
those operations, as far as it could then be obtained, is obliiratory and 
final, I repaired to this place. Having now a strong belief that the 
packet, with its important euclosure, has some way miscarried. I 
have been engaged since Monday evening, the 12th instant, wb.en I 
first saw Mr. Spalding, in making arrangements for proceeding im- 
mediately to the performance of our duty. A copy of the proceed- 
ings necessar_Y before the actual connnencement of the work, in tlie 
form in whicli they really took place between us. of questions, rea- 
sonings, and decisions, will be forwarded to j^our department' by the 
next mail. The Georgia Commissioner, by a negociation with the 
bank of Darien. madeupon Tuesday the 13th instant, has provided 
the funds requisite for commencement and it has been agreed that the 
Avork shall be performed at joint charge of the two Governments, by 
a single party under the control of the two Commissioners, acting 
in conjunction, with precisely equal powers. I had tlie good fortune 
to procure in Riclunond the journal of Andrew Ellicott, which is 
completely in detail, and was prepared by him for the press after the 
report was made. I have no hesitation, under tlie actual circum- 
stances, to consider as entirely authentic what he there says was the 
result of the joint operations of the two Commissioners, and the final 
agreement between them. I am already assured of the complete 
ostensibility of the mark which Ellicott says, in his journal, was 
made in presence of the two Commissioners, by their joint order, to 
designate the eastern extremity of the line. "We have nothing, there- 
fore, to do but to run it so that it shall coincide, as nearly as we can 
possibly nuike it. with the present geo<ri-aphical line, they are of a 
terrestrial great circle, never yet traced and marked. From all the 
accounts hitherto received by us, the Okefenoke Swamp is absolutely 
impenetrable by men bearing compass and chain, without first open- 
ing a vista and then making a footbridge. We expect to have to de- 
pend upon a traverse, as we are not authorized to proceed in that only 
complete but very expensive way. A com]^etent surveyor could not 
be procured in Georfia for less than eight dollars a day. all expenses 
paid besides. T could have brought one fi'om Virginia far superior 
to the l)est in this State for five dollars. Having. Avith much pains, 
satisfied myself of the thoi'ough competency of the surveyor ap- 
pointed by the authorities of Georgia. T have consented to accept of 
him. although he is not at all an astronomer, and must proceed by 
geometrical means alone, unconnected by any astronomical operation, 
which may answer sufficiently well on the present occasion. His de- 
mand was ten dollars per diem, but T cannot consent to give more 
than four dollars for his compensation from the Ignited States. The 
men requisite will be engaged from one dollar a day to twenty dol- 
lars the month, with the exception of two of a superior order, whose 
.services cannot be dispensed with. The whole provisions and other 
equipments must be procured in Savannah, and steps are already 



[Doc. No. 43.] 23 

taken for that purpose. Xothing whatever can be had in or near 
the country through which the line runs, to which we shall be con- 
fined at least three months. We could not make our preparations, 
even with a smaller sum tlum fifteen hundred dollars. Mr. Spalding 
has procured a larger accommodation, and there will be considerable 
saving- from his success in that measure. We concur fully in the dis- 
position and determination to use all possible economy, and, neces- 
sary to that, all the despatch possible consistent with accuracy. 
I have the honor to be, 

Your most obedient humble servant, 

TH. M. EANDOLPH, 

Commissioner, diC. 
Hon. Jaisies Barbour, Sec^y of War. 



Darien, February 28, 1827. 
Sir : I have the honor to inform you, that the party destined to 
run the line between the United States' Territory of East Florida 
and the State of Georgia, has left Darien, fully equipped and pro- 
vided for that purpose at the expense of Georgia; one half of all 
charges incurred to be defrayed by the United States' Government,, 
provided the moiety do not exceed the appropriation made by Con- 
gress on this occasion. 

I have the honor to enclose a transcript of the proceedings of the 
two Commissioners forming a board for the purpose in question, and 
to beg your attention to it at your leisure. 

My last communication from j^ou is dated December 23, 1826. 
I am, sir. 

Your most obedient humble servant, 

TH. M. RANDOLPH, 

Commission er. d^c. 
The Hon. James Barbour, Sec\/ of War. 



Monday, February 12, 1827. Governor Randolph, Commissioner 
on the part of the United States, for establishing the boundary line 
between Georgia and Florida, arrived at Darien. 

Mr. Spalding, the Commissioner on the part of the State of Georgia, 
waited upon him, when, after deliberation, the following prelimi- 
nary points Avere settled, without doubt or contrariety of opinion. 

1st. We will commence running the line of separation l)>t\v('ou 
(ieorgia and Florida at the head of the St. Mary's. 

2d. There shall be but one surveyor employed. 

3d. We will engage from fifteen to twenty men for our various 
operations, as we may find necessary in the progress of our under- 
taking. 

4th. AVe shall provision them for the whole operation at this place. 

5th. We will employ for the transport of our provisions, light 
wagons. 

6th. We will make our preparations at all points at the joint ex- 
pense of the United States and the State of Georgia. 



24 [Doc. No. 43.] 

7th. It will be necessar}^ to provide the sum of two thousand dollars 
for the procuring of provisions and equipments for the Commis- 
sioners and the gentlemen that accomj)anying them; for the surveyor 
and men under him. 

8th. It will be necessary to provide the sum of five hundred dollars 
to meet the accidents to which every human operation is subject, 
without being reduced to the necessity of sending back for those aids 
after they have become necessar}'. 

9th. ]Mr. Spalding, the Commissioner for Georgia, will draw upon 
his Excellency, Governor Troup, through the Bank of Darien. The 
Commissioner on the part of the United States engaging on the part 
of the United States, to refund a moiety of such advance to Georgia. 

The Commissioners then proceeded to nominate John Randolph, 
Esq. commissary and commandant of the party, with power to regu- 
late and direct the police of the camp. 

They nominated John G. Bell secretary and accomptant, and deter- 
mined that these gentlemen should receive a compensation for their 
services. 

\Mien the Board adjourned. 

Extract from the minutes. 

J. G. BELL, 
Secretary to the Commissioners. 

Answer to the first query, viz: Shall we commence running the 
line of separation between Georgia and Florida on the St. Mary's 
or at the Chattahoochie? 

If the Okefenoke Svcamp be penetrable at all, by a surveying party, 
which is not authorized to incur the expense of cutting a vista through 
it, commencement should be made at the eastern extremity of the 
boundary line ; for the earlier, after this time of the year, the attempt 
is made, the less difficult3% risk, and labor will attend it, and the 
greater the probable accuracy of the operations to be performed. 

The season Avill be too far advanced to allow of any such attempt, 
when the line has been first extended from the western extremity to 
the western margin of the Okefenoke. The time requisite to reach 
the mouth of Flint, ;J00 miles from Darien, along the zigzag course 
which must be pursued, there being no direct route thither, may per- 
haps be better employed in proceeding more slowly and more exactly 
in running the line from the eastern extremity at once. The saving 
of that time will give more leisure for the most difficult part of the 
Avork. of which a greater degree of accuracy will be the sure effect, 
and the healthier early season will render hurry unnecessary. The 
i:)resent is the exact time for such operations. Upon such ground as 
the sAvamp, the Avater Avill l)e sufficiently warm for Avading, and the 
foliage greatly thinner now than later. Again, if the Okefenoke be 
absolutely impenetrable Avith compass and chain, and the intention 
to run the line through it be accordingly found altogether impracti- 
cable, the fact can be determined only by going there and making the 
experiment ; in which case, very certainly it Avill be most advisable 
to make a traverse, and find thereby the point at Avhich the line Avould 
have come out of the SAvamp, if it had been run through it, so as to 
giA'e the power of proceeding AvestAvard at once. In that case, the 
random or guide line Avill probably diverge more from the true line 
than if it had begim at that end Avhere no traverse is necessary. But, 



[Doc. No. 43.] 25 

if that should be the result, as is highly probable, the greater accu- 
racy so attained in running cannot be demonstrated without con- 
tinuing on to the end, which the case supposes cannot be done, and 
the advantage may be lost in the traverse, so as at last to leave a 
doubt whether the line actually run will, if ever it should be con- 
tinued throughout by a broad vista and foot-bridge, strike the point 
designated as the head of the St. Mary's river, or not. It would 
not be determined, with sufficient certainty, what the deviation had 
been, nor whether the error had been made in coming on from the 
Chattahoochie to the western margin of the swamp, or in the traverse 
made to find where the line ought to come out of the swamp, on the 
east side of it : upon wdiich grounds, I give it as my opinion that we 
should begin at the point designated by Ellicott and Minor as the 
head of St. Mary's as near as they could approach it, taking care to 
consider the point designated as the true head, source, origin, and not 
the point marked by a mound, as the point of our commencement ; 
that we should calculate our course from the latitudes and longi- 
tudes of the two ends, as given by the said Commissioners, and pro- 
ceed upon that course, making the correction requisite as we proceed, 
to the Chattahoochie, whence we should return, correcting and mark- 
ing the line in our progress, until we reach the absolutel}'' impene- 
trable part of the Okefenoke, where we should erect a durable monu- 
ment of some kind, and another such where our line, by computation, 
should come out of the impenetrable part of the swamp on the east 
side thereof, taking care, at the same time, to renew Ellicott and 
Minor's mark. 

Answer to the second question: Should there be one or two sur- 
veyors employed ? 

I am not of opinion tluit more than one can be employed at one 
time, if the two parties act in conjunction, literally, according to the 
interpretation of the language of the law of the United States upon 
this subject, acquiesced in by the Commissioner of Georgia. I find 
that a surve3'or fit for the purpose cannot be engaged in Georgia for 
the comiDensation allowed by the Government of the United States. 
I have satisfied myself fully, with much pains, that the one appointed 
by the authorities of Georgia is entirely competent every way. I am 
willing to take his place myself for a time, should am^ accident hap- 
pen to suspend his progress in the work; so that it shall not stop, but 
shall be kept in progress until he can resume his functions. I have 
no objection to fixing his compensation at eight dollars a day during 
all the time he is employed, provided one-half of that compensation 
be paid by Georgia; the other half by the United States. I think 
that all his expenses must necessarily be borne, besides his compensa- 
tion, at the joint charge of the two Governments. 

Answer to the third question: What number of men shall be en- 
gaged ? 

In addition to the number required by the surveyor, which cannor 
possibly be fewer than two chain-carriers, four pioneers, and three 
signal bearers — in all nine, there should be, in my opinion, four super- 
numeraries armed with rifles ; two to hunt every day alternately, to 
procure fresh meat for the party ; the other two to attend as a guard 
against the insolence and pilfering of the strolling Indians. 

These men should be engaged to take the places of the surveyor's 
attendants, whenever fatigue, accident, or indisposition may disable 



26 [Doc. No. 43.] 

any of them. They should be hired by the month, at a rate not over 
$20. Of course there must be drivers to the wagons used in the trans- 
portation of provisions and camp equipage for tlie Commissioners, 
surveyor, and men of all kinds of service. Such a party, employed 
for a purpose which keeps them for several months in an unsettled 
country, manifestly needs one gentleman to act as commissary for 
procuring, preserving, and issuing the necessary stores, and another 
to act as secretary and accomptant ; the two to exercise authority over 
the men at all times when off their daily duty, so as to prevent dis- 
orderly conduct, or strolling, or negligence in what may be required 
of them at such times, and to see that they observe the rules declared 
in the ai-ticles of agreement for service made with them by the Com- 
missioners. Upon the commissary will (lei)end tlie attendance, as far 
as ])racticable, of the provision wagons, the drawing of supplies from 
them, the preparations for encampment every night, and diet at the 
proper times. 

It will be the duty of the secretary to make out, every night, a cor- 
rect copy for each of the Commissioriers of the surve^'or's field book 
for the day, that they may know with certainty how the work is pro- 
ceeding in regard to accuracy. A necessity might arise for holding 
intercourse with the Indians, who are numerous not far from the 
line towards the western end, in which case, such an officer as the last 
mentioned Avould be Avanted. 

Surveyor's attendants 9 ; supernumeraries, to serve as guard and 
hunters, alternately, 4; officers 2; Avagoners and one cook will be 
wanting. 

The above is respectiuUy submitted, in part, to Mr. Spalding, by 
his most obedient hmnble servant. 

THOS. M. KANDOLPH, 

Comm'issioiier, c&o. 
Wechiesday^ Feb. 14, 1827, Darien. 

FourtJi Quel i/. Shall we provision for the whole operation at this 
place, and for how long? 

T. M. Randolph acknowledges himself unable to give an opinion 
upon this question, and leaves the decision upon it entirely to the bet- 
ter judgment and infonnation of ^Mr. S])alding. All that he has 
been able to learn on the road through the Carolinas and Georgia 
tends to convince that such a party as is indispensably necessary on 
this occasion must be provisioned beforehand, or subsist upon game 
killed in the Avoods through Avhich the line is to be run : for the 
country is all new, and, as yet, but little cultivated; much the smaller 
part of every crop actually made furnisher food for man: coiuinued 
emigi'ation to places near keeps all such articles constantly \\\) to a 
high price. The troops lately sent to suppress the Indian insurrec- 
tion in the same country must have consumed all that could be had, 
far and near, within their or our reach. If the provisions are to be 
procured so as to be carried out with the men, the place of the greatest 
trade nearest to the rendezvous at Darien must, of course, be the best 
for that purpose. If the party is to rely upon game for subsistence, 
it will inevitably disperse before the work can be half finished.* 

♦In jmswer to the inquiry, "and for liow long." the Commissioner of the 
United States tan only say, that he will concur with Mr. Spalding and Ihe sur- 
veyor, Mr. McBride, iu whatever opinion they may together form upon that 
point, not exceeding three months. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 27 

F'lftli Question. Shall we employ for transport light wagons or 
pack-horses ? 

The former seems preferable, because half the number of horses 
will answer; and if it should be found that the wagons cannot always 
accompany the party, still they can always keep near enough to pack 
from them to it, upon the same horses, the supplies necessary for daily 
consumption. 

Sixth. Shall we make our preparations in all points W\t\\ joint 
expense ? 

Ansioer. The United States' Commissioner, in answer to this ques- 
tion, lays before Mr. Spalding the law of the United States qn this 
subject, and the letters to him from the Secretary of War. 

The second section of the act requires a joint report upon the opera- 
tions necessary for the purpose intended, and the result, after the same 
shall have been performed, and obtained by the persons employed by 
the two (xovernments '' acting in conjunction.'' The third section 
appropriates $5000 to defray the expense on the part of the Ignited 
States. One of the letters from the Secretary of War to that Com- 
missioner, acting under his orders, says, "■ you will regard the appro- 
priation made by the Congress, in carrjdng into effect this trust, and 
in no case exceed it. It is desirable that every attention be paid to 
making the undertaking economical, and as much below the ajipro- 
priatiou as possible." Another uses this language : " In regard to all 
tlie details having reference to the survey, whether these relate to 
the selection of a surveyor, or other matters connected with the execu- 
tion of the trust confided to you. they are referred by the President to 
your agency and discretion." 

The Commissioner of the United States cannot hesitate to believe 
that he is fully authorized to give an opinion on this subject, and 
accordingly he declares to Mr. Spalding that he is fully convinced 
himself of the propriety of making all ^^reparations and carrying 
all operations on at the joint expense. 

Sere nth. ^Vhat sum may be deemed necessary for the procuring of 
provisions and equipments for the Comndssioners and gentlemen who 
attend them, with the surveyor and men engaged under him? 

The number of persons once determined by the two Commissioners, 
and actually selected and employed by the surveyor, also the prob- 
able time the operations may take, once calculated, Mr. Spalding, 
who knows best wdiat articles are requisite, as well as their prices in 
the nearest great juarket towns, can best determine what sum it may 
recjuire to procure them. The Commissioner of the United States 
will readily actjuiesce in any which the appropriation made by Con- 
gress will justify. 

Eighth. Will it be necessary to be furnished with mone3^ed means 
to meet accidents to Avhich every human operation is subject; or 
shall we depend upon sending for these aids after they have become 
nesessary? 

Ansiccr. Money might be wanted to pay off men discharged for 
any oue of a variety of causes which it is obvious may possibly pro- 
duce tliat effect: something indispensable might be lost, or in some 
unaviodable way rendered useless: in which case, to save time and 
expense, it must be replaced from the nearest settlement where it it 
can be procured. Whatever money may be carried, will be as entirely 
safe in the pocket of Mr. Spalding as any where it could be put. 
43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 5 



28 [Doc. No. 43.] 

It need not be leniarked that such a circumstance should he a pro- 
found secret, for the knowledge of it might excite daring cupidity 
in Indians or others. 

Ninth. In what manner shall we procure the funds necessary for 
carrymg into effect our resolutions? 

Answer. If Mr. Spalding cannot procuj-e them from the re- 
sources of Georgia, by application to the Governor, or in some 
more immediate way here, the commencement of the survey cannot 
be made until communication between the Commissioner of the 
United States and this Government sliall be had. and the orders of 
the President received. 

Money can onlj^ be drawn from the Treasury of the United States, 
under the appropriation for this purpose, by the requisition of the 
head of the War Department. That the United States' Treasury will 
be liable to the authorities of Georgia for any advance it may make 
for the purpose of running this line, provided it neither exceed one 
moiety of the expense actually and unavoidably incurred in the pros- 
ecution of the intention of Congi'ess in this particular case, nor yet 
exceed the whole amount of the appropriation made by them on the 
occasion, need not be demonstrated to the authorities of Georgia. 

jNIr. Spalding may rel}^ upon the Commissioner of the United States 
for whatever co-operation he nuiy require from hiui in this and all 
other points. 

Most respectfully submitted, bv 

THOMAS M. RAXDOLPH, Sen. 

Comm'r. d.'^-. 

To Thomas Spalding, Esq. 

Comm'r., d.'C. 



Memoranda of Points to he determined with Gov. Randolph. 

1st. Shall Ave commence running the line of separation between 
(ireorgia and Florida on the St. ^Farys" or at the Chatahoochie (' 

2d. Shall there be one or two surve3'ors? 

3d. What number of men shall be engaged? 

4th. Shall we provision them for the whole operation at this place, 
and for how long? 

5th. Shall we employ, for transport, light wagons or pack-horses? 

6th. Shall we make our preparations in all points at the joint ex- 
pense ? 

7th. What suui may be deemed necessary for the procuring of 
provisions, and equipments for the Commissioners, and gentlemen 
who attend them? for the surveyor, and men engaged \uider him? 

8th. Will it be necessary to be provided with uioneyed means, to 
meet the accidents to which every human operation is subject; or 
shall we depend upon sending for these aids after they become neces- 
sary? 

9th. In what manner shall be procured the funds necessary for 
carrying into effect our resolutions? 

KespectfuUv submitted to Governor Randolph, bv 

THOMAS SPALDING, 

Commissioner^ c&c. 

Darien, Fehruary 13, 1827. 



[Doc. Xo.43.] 29 

East Florida, kear Lakk Oklaiiatciie, 

Saturday^ March 24, 1827. 
Sir: I have the honor to inforiu the President of the United 
States, through that department over which you preside, that the 
party occupied in running the boundary line between Georgia and 
Florida arrived on the St. Mary's upon the 6th day of March. On 
the 8th, Mr. McBride, the surveyor appointed by the Governor of 
Georgia, with a company of men of his own selection, commenced 
that operation by measuring one mile due north from the mound 
made by Ellicot and Minor, in the Spring of the year 1800, to indi- 
cate the vicinity of the head of St. Mary's, then inapproachable by 
them. From the extremity of that one mile, they began a line in the 
course north 85° 46' 45" west, calculated and intended to reach the 
junction of the Flint and Chatahoochie arms of the Apalachicola 
river, by a deflexion to the west of 2' 27" in every five miles. The 
line soon entered a swamp of such extent, that, although completely 
separated from the Great Okefenoke by a narrow and low but dry 
isthmus, covered with long-leafed pine and fan palmetto, it did not 
emerge under fifteen miles. In a few chains under thirty miles, the 
Suwanee river was crossed, without making an oli'set; and there is 
now no ground to apprehend that such an intermission in the work 
will take place on the part of the line, except in the case of ponds too 
deep to pass, but beyond which the signals can be distinctly seen. The 
line misses the Suwanuchee, but intersects the Alapahaw and Wythla- 
coochie branches of the Suwanee river. Of the chain of lakes lying 
on this part of the line, all except this, near which we now are, will 
be in Georgia ; some of the othei's are ten or fifteen miles in circum- 
ference. This is a mile long, and not much less in width, with 
transparent waters and dry banks, in the midst of a fertile coun- 
try', with scenery truh^ picturesque, and highly beautiful. Of the 
climate, I can say nothing more than that, since the 25th day of 
Januar}', when I entered South Carolina, there has been an uninter- 
rupted continuance of the finest Spring weather I ever witnessed 
in m_v life, with no more rain than what has afforded a variation 
as agreeable as necessary to vegetation. I have not had the honor as 
yet to receive any comnnmication from your department since I left 
Jiichmond, but I trust that I may, nevertheless, before I reach 'the 
C'hathoochie, be gratified with the answer I have so long and so much 
desired, to my application from Albemarle, early in December, 
for a copy of the report made by Ellicott and Minor in 1800. As 
yet. I cannot myself say what resolution I shall take as to making 
the line permanently, if I remain unprovided with that important 
document, Avhich must have been lost in the endeavors to transmit it 
to me by mail. I shall go to Tallahassee from the nearest point of 
the line to that place, with the hope of finding the important com- 
munication there. I have strong hope that the line now running will 
terminate so near to the western extremity of the true boundary, that 
the return line will soon coincide with it; in which case, we have no 
more to do than to make a small mound at each of the mile stakes 
already erected, and inscribed with the distiince. as the line has ad- 
vanced. The last operation will be to continue the boundary east- 
ward until it reaches the St. Clary's river. The two most important 
geographical facts already ascertained, are. that the head spring of 
St. Mary's lies to the south of the point where the line intersects that 



30 [Doc. No. 43.] 

river, and that no ])art of the (ireat Okefenoke Swamp lies in Fk)rida. 
Ellicott and Minor appear to have made a judicious compromise: for 
a straight line from the moutli of the Flint river, passiufr through the 
point designated as the head of St. Clary's, would certainly cut off 
a slip of territory lying on the south side of St. Mary's river, and 
the north side of the line. 

I have the honor to l)e, sir. vour. &c. 

THOS. M. RAXDOLPH, Sen. 

Commissioner^ t&c. 
The Hon. James Barbot r. 

Secretary of War. 



Tallahassee, April 7, 1827. 
Sir: I have the honor to inform you that the line passed the 
Yamonia Lake on Thursday, Hth inst. The distance of 115 miles 
was measured to the main jxist road to this place, where it pa^^ses 
that hod}' of water. The divergence north, from all former lines, has 
been constantly increasing. It was there two miles: and there is 
now every reason to apprehend that our experiment line will termi- 
nate north of the settled western extremity of the true boundary. 
Nevertheless, having once ascertained the true cause with precision, 
we can avail ourselves of it fully on our return, to correct by: and 
we shall have no need of going thi'ough the swamps again : for we 
can always find the true line beyond by measuring very exactly the 
rectanguhir distance l)etween the two. where tliey enter such places. 
T am still without any communication from you since December '2:)d. 
That circumstance places me on ground upon which the subordinate 
officer of the President of the United States ought not to be ])ermitted 
to stand. As I have to depend on my own resources of all sorts, T 
feel even a higher responsibility, and more zeal and impatience than 
I might otherwise have done. But it is manifest that I can have no 
control whatever over the expenditure: and. also, that a continuance 
of the same determined support of the interests of the United vStates 
on the occasion may put an end to all further proceeding, and render 
that expense fruitless, and all our labor unavailing. I shall act as 
T persuade myself the President would do, if he were, in every re- 
spect, in my situation. I shall use every endeavor to attain the end 
desii-ed without further cost, and, of course, shall be ready to adopt 
any fair and just compromise offered to bring the matter to a con- 
clusion, knowing that what I assent to cannot bind the Government, 
if I am wrong. Every thing possible. Avith the means we have, shall 
be done to run the shortest possible line between the two settled ex- 
tremities of the boundary. But if Ellicott and ]Nrinor have erred in 
assigning tlieir geograj)hical ]>osition to those two points, it is mani- 
fest tliat the line V>etween them, traced accoi-ding t(^ calculation 
fotmded on their results, cannot be the true boundary. The space 
of such possible error corres]^<Mids with lands on the St. Abiry's and 
Suwanee of no value whatever, as they are barren natiu-ally. and 
occupied by marshes, which never Itecome dry, for the most part. 
There are indeed, some trulv valuable lands included Avithin the 



[Doc. No. 43.] 31 

doubtful limits, but scarcely enough to defray the charge of the exact 
operations requisite to give mathematical accuracy. 
I have the honor to be, sir, yours, &c. 

[No Signature.] 

P. S. Knowing that no apology is ever received for slovenly hand 
writing, I should not think of making any, but I cannot refrain 
from remarking, that the Georgia Commissioner has a Secretary at- 
tending him at five dollars per diem, and that every man of the 
party is a Georgian but myself, left to depend upon myself alone, 
uninstructed, unaided, unprovided, obliged to act in contrariety to 
their leader upon important points, among men who join him in 
support of an opinion, daily, almost, declared by him, that Georgia 
will be forever cramped in her growth, and retarded in improve- 
ment, until she separates from the Union, I find the variation of the 
needle, admitted by the Surveyor General here, to differ almost a 
degree from the quantity settled by two corresponding observations, 
made on the St, Mary's by the person employed to run the line at 
l^resent. Yet the means of ascertainino- have been exactly the same, 
viz : the sight vane, plumb line, and p(^lar star, at its greatest elon- 
gation from the pole. The extraordinary divergence ncn-th may have 
happened from inaccuracy on the occasion mentioned. Yet the 
operation was conducted with as much precision as I ever witnessed; 
and I had not, myself, the smallest suspicion of error, jSIy confi- 
dence in the Georgia Surveyor is unabated. He is a man of science, 
of expertness, and diligence, with a constancy not to be shaken, and 
a moral character not to be impeached. 

[No Signature,] 



Encampment neah Lake Yamonia. 

Of East Florida, April 17, 1827. 
SiK : I have the honor to inform the President of the United States, 
through you, that, when the experiment line run from the point 
designated by Ellicott and Minor as the head of the St. Mary's 
river, toward the junction of the rivers Flint and Ghattahoochie, had, 
so nearly as three or four miles, approached its termination, a de- 
spatch was received by the Commissioners of Georgia from the 
Executive authority of that State, and connnunicated to the Commis- 
sioner of the United States, wdiich instantaneously arrested the 
progress of the line, as it was, according to instructions accompany- 
ing it, put immediately, Avithout any demand or application, into the 
hands of the latter. The Governor of Georgia recalls the assent of 
Georgia, heretofore supposed to have been deliberately and distinctly 
given, to the concurrent operations provided for by the act of Con- 
gress relative to the Florida boundary in continuance and com- 
pletion of those formerly conducted b}- the Commissioners of the 
United States and Spain, with the same object, but left by them un- 
finished. He declares that another investigation of the source of the 
St, Mary's, and a more satisfactory demonstration of its locality, 
must be made, before Georgia will consent to receive, as her southern 
boundary, any line run between the geographical points determined 



32 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

and designated as the terminations east and Avest of siicli a line; 
unless it should be found that one of these j^oints, the eastern, has. in 
fact, been placed further to the south than its true position, "vvhen 
precisely determined according to the conditions prescribed by the 
treaty between the United States and Spain, in 1795. He. moreover, 
advises, but does not command, the Commissioner of Georgia to insti- 
tute operations tending to make such discovery, and conuuunicate the 
result before he proceeds further in the work. Pie requires him. how- 
ever, to act in conjunction with the Commissioner of the United 
States in such operations, or, in case of his refusal, not to prosecute 
them at all. That Commissioner, having no authorit}'^ which would 
justif}^ his deliberating, for one moment, on such a proposition, pro- 
posed to suspend all further proceedings until he could consult his 
Government, or to run the course recommended by Ellicott in his 
journal, with the deflexion prescribed, from the junction of the rivers, 
and see where it would strike the St. ^Nfary's river. To neither was 
the Commissioner of Georgia willing to give his assent. Both 
thought the public good would be most promoted by continuing the 
endeavor to terminate the affair, and prevent the difference likely to 
arise, by procuring a result Avhich would thoroughly fulfil the act of 
Congress, and be, at the same time, likely to give sufficient satisfac- 
tion to Georgia. After the arrangements made at Darien, the ex- 
pense actually incurred, all the benefit of which would be lost, the 
pledge given to the men employed to bring them back to that place, 
and the agreement made bctAveen the Commissioners themselves to 
compromise differences on all occasions, if possible, and use all })rac- 
ticable means to attain the end in view, fairly in the progress, and 
equally in the termination, great reluctance to discontinue altogether, 
of course, existed in the minds of both. It was at length concluded 
to run a line back by the course which the resolution of the plain 
triangle would give, found by the experiment line computed out by 
an offset to the lines formerly run for the same purpose, the one mile 
line at the St. Mary's river, and the intended line protracted before 
run. The deflexion necessary in running a plum line has. of course, 
been observed. Forty-five miles of such a line have been already 
run, and the calculated distance from former lines, so far, c',>rre- 
sponds with the actual rectangular distance found to exist. A fcAv 
more ostensible marks than on the experiment line have been made. 
The work is no longer considered as capable of producing a final 
result; but sanguine hopes are entertained that it may prove satis- 
factory, in the issue, as to reconcile both authorities to an acceptance 
of it as a compromise the best likely to be made, because the whole 
proceedings, from the act of Congiess to the end of the geographical 
process, have been founded upon a former compromise, which has re- 
mained unimpeached for twentj^-seven years; and, moreover, has been 
confirmed by repeated operations ordered by Legislative or executive 
acts, founded upon the general conviction that it was not only equit- 
able, but the best possible to be made, according to all the information 
acquired in the time elapsed since the date of it. [See letter of the 
United States to Georgia Commissioner. April 9.] The experiment 
line Avas apart and nortli from that run by Air. ^IcNeil, under orders 
of the SurA'eyor General of Florida, pursuant to an ExecutiA^e man- 
date, under the administration of Monroe, full tAvo miles, Avhen moi'e 
than ten miles from its computed end. As the commi&sion is consti- 



[Doc. Xo. 43.] 33 

tutocl. the Surveyor appointed by Georgia, and accepted by the offi- 
cer of the United States, not the less considerately and willingly 
because he had no other resource, was, of course, the sole umpire 
in cases of difference of opinion.;* and. as such, of course, the United 
States' Commissioner had no control over him in any way. The 
Commissioner of Georgia attributed the extraordinary divergence 
here mentioned to an error in determining the magnetic variation. 
That taken, was 50" less than the allowance now at Tallahassee, 
ascertained by order of the Surveyor General, three and a half years 
ago, in the ^•ery same way, viz: sight vanes, plumb line of thirty 
feet length, with plummet in Avater to guard against agitation by 
wind, and the poplar star at its greatest observed elongation, deter- 
mined by observation. The correspondence of two observations, 
made through separate nights, near Ellicott's ]\Iound, gave confidence, 
although the mode was not that the Commissioner of the United 
States would have preferred. There is much reason to believe that 
the geographical data for the calculation of the course used, which 
were assumed from Ellicott, are incorrect, and have vitiated the 
result. But the geographical point, the junction of Chatahoochie 
and Flint, is indefinite. Junction of the rivers means junction of 
their waters, which are identified only by their common natural 
banks in their ordinary fullness. The union of these is the junction 
of two rivers. The term confluence of their streams would have had 
a different meaning. The experiment line now run would have come 
very near <that naturally marked point, although far north of the 
extreme of the submerged gi'ounds projecting from the same, and in- 
dicating the confluence of the main streams or currents.* 

Very respectfully. 

Your obedient servant, 

TH. M. RANDOLPH. 
Ja:mes BAitBoiR, Esq. 



]\[iLLEDGEvii.LE. M dy !•">. 182T. 
Sir : I have had the honor to transmit to you, b}'^ mail, three several 
packets, containing the communications made by the Governor of 
Georgia to the Commissioner of that State, while we were upon the 
line, and a correspondence between the two Commissioners, which 
took place upon the suggestion of Mr. Spalding, who declared that 
he deemed that formality necessary. In consequence of the last com- 
munication from Governor Troup, all further proceedings stopped on 
the 28th April; the Commissioner of the United States being entirely 
unprovided with means to continue them, or any accrediting testi- 
monial which might have supplied the place: which he regrets the 
more, from the conviction he is under that the result would have 
been accepted by the Legislature of Georgia, and a final boundary 
established without that additional expense which has been, by 
the interference, rendered unavoidable. The expenditure made on 
this occasion has proved much greater than any one expected: but i€ 

* Trees grow there wliicb wonld not live out of tbe water. The junction of 
two ri'i ers t-annot lif r.t a I'lace a mile or more below that at which their waters 
have been already joined, supposing the natural banks or sides of the channel to 
identify the waters. 



34 [Doc. No. 43.] 

is manifest that the United States' Commissioner could have no con- 
trol over it. and that he could not do otherwise than submit to the 
judgfrnent of the Commissioner of Georoia upon every question of 
that nature, for the alternative to require the Commissioner of Geor- 
*ria to submit to him, who was nnich less qualified to judo^e of such 
thinirs in Georjria. jMuch might have been saved by brincring out one 
half at least of the party from Viroinia, as was proposed. In that 
case, the work would have been couipleted. and a new investigation for 
the head of the St. Mary's made, which the two Commissioners had 
indeed agreed to make when they arrived at the eastern end of the 
line; that of the Ignited States having proposed to take the responsi- 
bility upon himself of concurring from the entire conviction that the 
result would thoroughly support the view taken by Congress. By 
crossing the St. Mary's at Ellicot's mound, above and below, on horse- 
back, repeatedly, while Mv. Spalding had crossed it only once upon 
a log, I had satisfied myself of the accuracy of Ellicott and Minor. 
Immediately above the mound B, the river could not be navigated 
in a canoe, for it is a narrow rivulet, in the middle of wide bog; 
while imuiediately l)elow, all in sight of B. if the ground was cleared 
of trees and shrubs, it is a river boatable for fifteen tons: above, it 
cauie to my horse's knees: below, half way up the saddle skirts, at 
the same time. It is true, that followinjr the course of the greatest 
length of one of the swamps which sup])ly the river, you will no 
southwardly a little; and that swamj). after rains, has a perceptil)le 
motion in its waters, but another turns west, and is much more ex- 
tensive, with much the greater part of its extent on the north of our 
line. The question made b}' Georgia now is too trifling, in my opin- 
ion, to have ])roduced those consequences which the ferment excited 
about Milledgeville. I conclude, has rendered expedient. A letter 
from a Secretary of War. in 1819. authorized Georgia to expect a 
new investigation to determine the exact locality of the head of St. 
Mary's. The expression used is. "" the acquisition of the Floridas may 
change the character of the boundaries."' But that investigation was 
really made by Georgia in 1819, and the report concluded in these 
words : '' We are therefore of opinion that Mr. Ellicott and the Span- 
ish deputation were correct in establishing on the northern bank the 
point of demarcation between the State of Georgia and the Province 
of East Florida." The question now made did not occur to the three 
Commissioners of 1819, all appointed by Georgia. This correspond- 
ence will be fouud in the Department of War. and the report, as 
communicated by Governor Ral^un. It is proposed here to send a 
Georgia surveyor to search for the head of the river. I cannot omit 
to declare my sentiuients in regard to this proposal, that they may 
not be unknown when that case comes up hereafter. Whoever he may 
be, he will not venture to give an opinion adverse to the pul)lic wishes, 
if the exciteuient in the pul)lic mind sliould be considerable at the 
time, upon the question, which is not the case now generally. I am 
very sure: for many uiore persons have expressed their regret at the 
interrupt iou than the contrary. Yet. no doubt, by taking a dry tiuie, 
-a survey may l)e made of the rivulet ruuning into St. Mary's near the 
mound, and the point determined geographically where it ceases to 
be a rivulet and becomes a bog. supposing the astronomical results 
of Ellicott, by which the geographical position of the mound has been 



[Doc. No. 43.] 35 

determined to be correct, and their verification by a practical astron- 
omer, furnished with perfect instruments, and allowed several weeks 
at each extremity of the line, ou<;ht not to be omitted on such an 
occasion. With respect to the western extremity, inquiry should then 
be made whether a point in the bed of the river, rarely ever uncov- 
ered there, has not been taken for the junction, one mile or more 
south of the cape or headland forming the point of the fork where 
the banks of the two rivers unite, and their waters join, except in 
very uncommon dry seasons. Cypress and other aquatic trees grow 
all over the beds of the rivers to the south, and their streams are seen 
meandering through them. That is the case with Suwanee, where 
it is very rapid. I must be permitted to declare my opinion, that, 
if Georgia and the United States were to leave the geometrical opera- 
tions precisely as they now stand, it would give general satisfaction 
hereafter. Ir the line run westward on this occasion, as far as the 
Wythlacoochie, ()8 miles, and the line run eastward to the same, 93 
miles, with the short course of river between, were adopted as the per- 
manent boundary, there could not be any dissatisfaction on either 
side, now or hereafter, and no further expense would be requisite. 
One straight line Avill intersect the Wythlacoochie more than once, 
and will leave small portions of Florida on its north, and like frag- 
ments of Georgia on the south, forming fractional parts, upon a gen- 
eral survey, of no value whatever. These two lines are sufficiently 
marked as they are now ; the first here mentioned by mile stakes 
numbered, and the second by five-mile hillocks, made with a hoe, and 
both well, by blazing trees on both sides. 

AMien the party broke up, the majority proceeded to Darien, with 
the provisions which remained, while the Connnissioner and secre- 
tary, with the surveyor, chain-carriers, and signal-bearers, set out 
directly by the head of the Allassaha, a branch of the Suwanee river, 
and the south bend of Altauiaha. for Milledgeville. 1 acconq)anied 
those, of course, with the view, first, to close the commission and get 
coj^ies of all the documents, and, next, to obey the order of the de- 
partment issued from the Office of Indian Affairs, under dates of 
December and February last, in regard to the claims of Baley and 
Brodnax, for supplies furnished to the friendly Creek Indians, who 
had l)een expelled from their country when Mcintosh was assassi- 
nated. When we arrived at the Altamaha, the waters of Oakmulgee 
were so high that it could not be crossed, and we had to make our 
way, after separating from the surveyor and his men, along its 
banks, for fifty miles, up to the ferry at Hartford; before we arrived 
at which, we had numerous creeks to pass, by wading up to the shoul- 
ders, on account of the unsoundness of their bottoms, and were 
thereby delayed until the night of the 6th. On the morning of the 
10th. the Commissioners separated. I have a copy of the accounts 
of the expenditure, but I have as yet received nothing from the sur- 
veyor, for whose residence, in Putnam county, I shall set out to-mor- 
row. l)eing sure of concluding to-day the business devolved on me 
fiom the Office of Indian Affairs. Here I may be allowed to inform 
you, that the Creek Indiaris of the party friendly to the United vStates 
are. at this time, almost starving; the only subsistence of men, 
women, and children being the root of a kind of band)oo, called here 
I'hina briar, (the Smilax Suedo China of the botanists,) which is 



36 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

rendered esculent only by a tedious preparation, and has not nutri- 
tive virtue enough to save the lives of their children, all of whom 
will probably perish without immediate relief from the United 
States, as most of those of the Seminoles in the Peninsula of Florida 
have already' clone, from want of wholesome food. Xo other aid 
from the United l^tiites than the issue of one peck of corn a head per 
week would be necessary or expedient. Brigadier General Ware, of 
the Georgia militia, would be the best person to address to on this 
occasion, if it should be resolved to do any thing in this case of the 
utmost possible wretchedness, into which their civil broils have 
brought the part of the nation alwaj^s faithful to the United States. 
I have no doubt that the whole Creek nation could be easil}^ prevailed 
upon now to consent to move over the Mississippi, and the Seminoles 
will gladly share their destinies at this time. But a special mission 
from the President, best perhajis composed of the military of some 
rank, will be necessary on the occasion, in my opinion. Xothing is 
likely to be done, unless the authority be so new and of such dignity 
as to render useless, or vain and unavailing, in result, all factious 
contrivances to thwart the views of the Government, from ill will to 
the agents employed b}' it. These savages are as credulous and inde- 
cisive as they are ignorant and capricious. With them idle tales or 
malicious representations and statements have as much effect as accu- 
rate information. Every thing which fosters and strengthens their 
natural suspicion and jealousy is well received by them. AMiatever 
is done with them, then, must be quick done, and by a commanding 
influence. 1 trust what I have here said needs no apology, as my 
attention has been turned to this subject by duties which have been 
assigned to me from a branch of your department. I have already 
forwarded my report in the case of Baley, and shall send that in the 
case of Brodnax by to-morrow's mail. The decisions I have made in 
these cases have been founded upon evidence which would have 
satisfied my mind as a juror, in making up my opinion for a verdict 
in concurrence with the others. If I have been deceived, all the i)er- 
sons to whom I have had access, and who were in the way to be in- 
formed at the time, have been deceiAed also. Assertions made by the 
disapi)ointed, springing from jealousy of the success of others, have 
been chdy considered by me, notwithstanding their want of weight 
from want of character. 

I am authorized to say. in regard to the question with Georgia, 
about the head of St. Mary's, that, if General Bernard, now in that 
quarter, weie required to examine and report, it would be speedily 
decided, without additional exj^ense, in great probability, by the next 
Georgia Legislature and Congress. 

T have the honoi' to be, sir. 
Your most obedient. 

TH. M. RANDOLPH. 

The llOn. J \MKs Bakhoiu, Sccretar)/ of War. 

P. S. I consider the departui'e of Colonel Brearly. before the ex- 
treme distress for Avant of food had fallen upon the Creek Indians 
of McL, tosh's party, as A-ery unfortunate: and I feel very sure the 
Colonel has had some bad. if not insidious advice given him on that 
subject. They Avould not only enter their names now. but Avould 
aetuallv follow him like hunii'rv doirs to ]>e fed. any where ho iiiiglit 



[Doc. Xo. 43.] 37 

lead. My information is derived from many persons Avhom I have 
met, at different times, some every day for a few da3's back, imme- 
diately from among- them. The wrechtedness of the Florida Indians 
was communicated to me through sure channels of information, while 
I was in the Territory. 

T. M. R. 

Ajrnl 4:fh, 1827. 

My DEAr. Sir : I have considered the subject of your letter ad- 
dressed to me this morning, with all the capacity I have, and with 
sentiments of the highest possible resj^ect for your knowledge, judg- 
ment, and zeal to procure a just and accurate termination of our 
undertaking. 

With respect to the lines formerly run, I have never had much 
confidence in them, because they have, two or three times, as I under- 
stand, diverged, converged, intersected, coincided for a space, and 
separated again. 

I have conjectured that Watson folloAved the course recommended 
by Ellicott without making the deflexion proposed by him, and that 
McXiel reserved the course simply, and made the deflexion, but, hav- 
ing Watson's setting out at hand, as he approached the western end, 
corrected by it, so as to ensure the same termination. 

I begin to fear with you that our variation may not have been 
determined with perfect precision ; but still, when Mr. McBride finds 
fhat with certp.inty. he can make use of the guide line, nevertheless, 
with equal advantage. I have approved of his putting down small 
temporary mile posts, with the number of miles inscribed on each, 
for obvious reasons; and I have no objection at all to having them 
removed, at the joint charge, as we return. With respect to the un- 
pleasant feelings excited in the minds of the people, as we do not 
agree in opinion as to the fact itself, I cannot express any other 
sentiment than that of sorrow, that any one person, settled near the 
boundary, should be so effected, even for a few days. I propose to 
you. for your consideration, to print an explanatory handbill at 
Tallahassee immediately, if there be a press there; if not, to let the 
Secretary employ himself in writing a number, to be distributed 
as widely and speedily as possible. My wish is, that this experi- 
ment line should be continued as begun. It cannot make a differ- 
ence in time of more than four days, if that. We may then com- 
mence anew, at the western extremity, upon Ellicott's course, if you 
please, with his deflexions, offsetting to the end of our guide line, 
which, it seems, must terminate north of the junction, effacing it as 
we return and making the real boundary by mounds as well as stakes. 
I think it would not be justifiable for me to accede to your proposal 
to abandon a line already run 11.5 miles out of 155. because its course 
has been further north" than was expected. I trust you will con- 
sent to its continuance unchanged in any way. even if it should 
threaten, before ended, more than at present, to be wholly unavailing. 

I beg you to be assured, my dear sir, of the cordiality and sincerity 
of the'sentiments of respect and esteem which it gives me so much 
pleasure to express, on all occasions, with regard to you. 

Writing, as I do^ on my knees from a log. I fear my hand will be 
scarcely ledble. It mortifies me extremely to be a bad penman at 



38 [Doc. No. 43.] 

all times: but I am row too old to improve in that at least, and must 
ask your indulgence for my inability to write under such circum- 
stances. 

I am, dear sir. 

Your most obedient servant, 

T. M. RANDOLPH, 

Commissioner, <&c. 
Thomas Spalding. Esq. 

C ommissione )\ die. 
P. S. I will reply more in detail to our favor of to-day, as soon as 
it mav be necessary, and I hes vour indulsrence for the delay. 



Junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie Rivers, 

Monday, April 9. 18-27. 
My dear Sir: I have this moment received a communication from 
Governor Troup, which, in the frankness of his character, he permits 
me to lay before you. This letter contains, in detail, the many rea- 
sons which, from time to time, I have taken the liberty to suggest to 
you as giving a claim to Georgia that the boundary line should not. 
at any event, be extended beyond the mound that Ellicott erected 
near the eastern branch of the St. Mary's river: believing, as I 
have done, from the beginning of our survey, that both the streams 
into which the St. Mary's is divided, take their source far south of 
the mound: but it is unnecessary for me to attempt to add any thing 
to the lucid exposition which Governor Troup has given, and I only 
allude to my oi:)inion here, lest it should have been sujiposed I could 
have lost sight of the rights of Georgia ui)on this subject. 

Yours, most ivspectfullv. 

TH. SPALDING. 

To Gov. Randolph, Commissioner, d'e. 



Thomas County, April 4, 1827. 
.My DEAR Sir: Mr. ]McBi-ide having joined us in camp. I beg leave 
to renew to you the proposition I macle two days ago. that we should 
here suspend the experiment line, which can. in no circumstance, be 
any longer necessary: and I beg to submit to you some reasons in 
addition to those ^^■hich were contained in my letter to Mr. McBride. 
and which letter I read to a'ou for your approbation. Since that 
time, Mr. ]\fcBride has run 28 miles, and, instead of diverging 
towards either Mr. McNeil's or Mr. Watson's lines, he is now eleven 
chains further from ^Ir. McNeil's, and five chains further from ^Nlr. 
"Watson's. It is imj)ossible. tlierefore. that we can imagine that, in 
the scarce 40 miles whicli remains to be run. his line will diverge so 
far south as lo unite with those lines which are now distant from his 
experiment line two miles and an eighth. It seems to me that our 
dinicuUies ha\e aiisen from permitting ourselves to suppose that Mr. 
AVatson and Mr. McNeil ran straight lines, and not lines describing 
the arc of a great circln. The continued divei-gement of Mr. 
McBride's line from the lines of these gentlemen demonstrates, to 
my mind, conclusively, that they, like him. must have ])ursued the 
arc of a ciivle, and that our deviation to the north must have arisep 
in a mistaken allowance for variation, and this, too, is now Mr. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 39 

McBride's opinion. As we are to coninience upon our real line at 
the junction of the Flint and Chattalioochie rivers, now distant but 
40 miles, to proceed at once there, and take up Mr. Ellicott's indicated 
course before any error of any consecpience, at all important, can 
have arisen, we will have reached this point, when Mr. McBride's 
experiment line will serve all the purjwses for which it was originally 
intended : it will serve to corre<'t and to verify our labors upon the 
line. 

This arrestment of the experiment line has become the more neces- 
sar}^, because we have arrived at a part of the country thickly in- 
habited, and, at every progressive mile, we are filling these inhabit- 
ants with uneasiness and alarm for their vested rights. It is known 
to us that the line we have been running is but an experiment line, 
and that its demarcation and measureniont is only intended for the 
purpose of more readily and more truh^ verifying our future work, 
but all this is not known to them ; and, although we may say this to 
those that we may meet in our way, words are fleeting and are perish- 
able, while our course has been written upon the trees, and their 
alai'm.s must and will be renewed as soon as we have passed. You 
will remember, my good sir, that, from the beginning, I have been 
reluctant in consenting to such demarcation, and have only yielded 
from the conviction in my own mind, that the superior knov^ledge 
which you yourself and Mr. McBride possessed upon this subject, 
might make that necessary which to me did not appear so. This 
necessity, however, can certainly now no longer exist; and I appeal 
to the feelings of liberality, which I have uniformly found in your 
bosom, for an indulgence of those feelings which you are now sensible 
must exist in mine; for suppose, sir, that, by any circumstance, after 
this experiment line should have been run, our Avork should be in- 
terrupted — and we hear rumors of Indian war at the present mo- 
ment — Avould not the labors that we have executed to do a serious in- 
jury, by alarming all persons who ai'e embraced within the-e two 
lines? might it not even generate feuds between (leorgia and P'lorida 
upon the subject of their boundaries, where now there are none? 
But I trust, my dear sir. I have said enough upon this subject ; and 
I therefore most respectfully request your perusal of this letter, with 
the copy of the letter addressed, two days ago, to Mr. McBride. 

Yours. &c. 



To Th. M. Randolph, Esq. 



T. SPALDING. 



ExECT TivE Department. 
Milled gerilh\ mth March. 18-27. 
Dear Sir: I have received your two several comnumications from 
the Florida line, of the Tth and' l*2th instant. In drafting your 
original instructions, it was confidently believed, from the Ijest 
sources of information accessible to me, not only that the latitude 
and longitude of the two mounds viz : the one at the mouth of the 
Flint, the other at the head of the St. Mar^-'s, had been established 
with the greatest accuracy and precision, but that the latter mound 
was, in its position, very nearly identical with the true source or 



40 [Doc. No. 43.] 

head of the St. Mary's. I do not learn, from either of your com- 
munications, that this is not the fact : without knoAving the rehitive 
position of the mound to the head of the river, it would seem that the 
commissioners, in a spirit of compromise, resolved to run the X. E. 
line of 640 perches, supposing the head of the river would be found 
within that line. 

The United States had unquestionably the constitutional right to 
form a treaty of boundary with Spain: to that treaty Georgia was 
no otherwise a party than as she was bound by the terms and stipu- 
lations of it when constitutionally made, as one of the States of the 
Confederacy. It has not been settled how far. in forming treaties 
•of boundary, the treaty-making power can proceed in surrendering, 
without their consent, territory claimed by the States. Apart from 
iiny constitutional doubts abotit it, it would seem sufficiently evident 
in the eye of justice and equity, that, if the United States, in a treaty 
of boundary Avith any foreign State, should exercise the power of 
conceding the territory of a State without her consent, such State 
would have a fair claim of indemnity or equivalent against the 
United States — exclusive sacrifices by one State not being demand- 
able of right by the United StJites for the common benefit of all the 
States. If, therefore, the United States, under the Spanish treaty, 
had knowingh', or otherwise, surrendered territory of Georgia to 
Spain. Georgia, under any circumstances, would have a just claim 
of indemnity on that account against the United States. If, in the 
course of evgnts, the territory so surrendered shoidcl become the 
]:)roperty of the United States. (Georgia, in the meantime, not having 
l)een indemnified,) that State might be considered as having a just 
claim on the United States, either for the restoration of the territory 
specifically, or its equivalent. If, by the act of the United States, 
the boundary had been incorrectly established by the United States, 
in consequence of which Georgia lost territory, the obligations of the 
one party and the rights of the other would not have been weakened 
on that account. Georgia would still have lost territory, not by her 
own net of omission, but by the act or omission of the United States. 
The United States would be bound, and most strongl};- bound, by her 
own act; if that act produced benefit to Georgia. Georgia might take 
advantage of it. The United States could not, b}' such an act. 
acquire benefit to themselves at the expense of Georgia. The rights 
of Georgia are independent of any act of the Commissioner of the 
United States, charged with carrying into effect the treaty with 
Spain : they rest on her own charter, on the treaty of ])eace. the Con- 
stitution of the United States, and her own Constitution. 

If the United States' Commissioner was correct in establishing the 
true line, Georgia will cheerfully acquiesce. If he was incorrect, the 
United States will not consider his act as binding and obligatory on 
Georgia; more esi)ecially, as now the question is not between the 
United States and Spain, but between the United States and Georgia: 
and the more especially too, as the line not having been yet run and 
marked by the joint act of the United States and Georgia, the ques- 
tion may be considered open for the ascertainment of the true line. 
If the niound B, therefore, and the true head of the St. Mary's shall 
<3oincide, or nearly coincide, we Avould have no objection to that 
mound as the point of departure. If, by his N. E. line of (UO perches, 
Mr. Ellicott has passed the head or source of the river, or if. by his 



TDoc. No. 43.] 41 

stipulating the termination of the mile due north from the mound, as 
the true point, the line shall pass to the north of the head or source 
of the river, it will not be expected by the United States that Georgia 
will adopt that line as matter of course. 

The Commissioner assumed the right so far to depart from the 
letter of the treaty, as to adopt, as the point of termination of de- 
parture, not the head or source of the St. Mary's, but a point one mile 
due north from the mound B. whether the source or head of the St. 
JNIary's fell within and siMith of that point, or not: whilst, therefore, 
the United States may be governed by that point, if the head of the 
St. Mary's should be found north of it, the State of Georgia will 
not be governed by the same point if the head of the St. Mary's 
should l)e found south of it. Georgia can rightfidly resort to the 
true head of the St. Mary's, if she finds benefit or advantage in doing 
so. no matter whether that head be found within the X. E. line of 
(i-iO perches, or south of it, that being the true point recognized by 
the treaty. The United States cannot take advantage of their own 
error to occasion loss to Georgia; but Georgia can insist on the act 
of the United States as obligatory on themselves, whether the United 
States suffer loss by it or not. Georgia is not disposed to derive to 
herself advantage from any error or mistake committed by the United 
States. In this^ respect, she will be satisfied with a result that will 
approximate nearly to her just claims under the charter, the treaties, 
jind the Constitution. The Governor does not undertake to decide 
that the point at which the Conimissioners have c:)mmenced is not 
the true point; because he has no means of ascertaining whether rhat 
point coincides or nearl}^ coincides, with the head of the St. Clary's. 
The Commissioners are best qualified to determine that fact. He 
only suggests to the Commissioner of Georgia the propriety of adopt- 
ing, as his guide, not what has actually been done by the commis- 
sioner of the United States under the treaty of 1795, but what, ac- 
cording to that and other treaties, ought to have been done. As, in 
a transaction of this kind with the United States, there can exist no 
motive for concealment or disguise, and the less so because of the 
high and honorable character of the gentleman who represents the 
United States, you are at liberty to disclose to him, Avithout reserve, 
the contents of this paper. If the views presented by it are not in 
accordance with his OAvn, he will candidly inform you what his 
own are. 

The propriety of recognizing the grants of Georgia, for lands 
which may be left out by the permanent line, is obvious, and would 
have been expected from the well known liberality of Gov. Randolph. 

It was not the intention of the instructions that the mound near 
to the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie should be tak'en as 
the point of termination or departure, but the junction itself. What- 
ever be the result of the joint proceedings of the two Commissioners, 
permit me to suggest the expediency of (provided the season should 
prove favorable for the object) an accurate survey, if practicable, 
of the course of the St. jNIary's, from the mound B, to its true source. 
Should the true source not be found at the mound B, but above it, 
it is very desirable, for more reasons than one, that all doubts on this 
subject should be removed, and on the highest authority. 

You will not attempt it without the concurrence of Governor 
Randolph, who, I am persuaded, will not withhold that concurrence, 



42 [Doc. No. 43.] 

particularly a^ the adjustment of any unfortunate difference which 
may he the result of your common efforts, must chiefly depend on 
a knowledge of this fact. 

Very respectfully and sincerely vours. 

G. M. TROUP. 
To Tiios. Spalding, Esq. 

Comm issioner, d'C. 



ENCAMPJtENT IN THE WoODS, 

iXear the jvnction of Flint and C'hattaJioochie, 

Tuesday, April 10, 1827. 

Dear Sir : For your prompt communication of the recent de- 
spatches receiyed by you from Goyernor Troup. I make my cordial 
acknowledgment. 1 shall certainly haye no hesitation in connnuni- 
cating to you whateyer instructions I may receiye on this occasion: 
for. as I understand our duty, there can be no collision or misunder- 
standing bearing any relation to it; as we haye merely to complete 
operations formerly commenced, and left unfinished, haying their 
foundation in yiews and decisions settled by an acquiescence of 
tAventy-seyen years on the part of Georgia, and eyen acted upon by 
her authorities on more than one occasion before, of the same nature 
Ayitli tliis. I can do no more than co-operate Ayith you in carrying 
into execution an act of Congress, by running a straight line. Ayhich 
can only niean the shortest possible line between two i);)ints ge()gra]:)h- 
ically determined twenty-seyen years ago. I'he eastern point is that 
designatetl by the connnissioners Ellicott and Minor, who haye dis- 
tinctly declared that the head of St. Clary's is so far indeterminate, 
that it lies within a certain described circle of considerable radius, 
and has a certain longitude and latitude : but has neyer been marked 
or described in any other way. or eyen found with certainty as yet. 

The western point is the junction of the waters of two riyt^'s, by 
which is 2:)lainly meant the extremity of the tongue of land between 
them, or that spot u})()n which, when you stand, one of your arms 
is extended oyer the water of one riyer. and the other oyer those of 
the other riyer. It is obyious that the riyer must, at the time of 
decision, be completely within its banks, and yet not at the lowest 
state of its Ayaters. The western point once fixed upon thus, and a 
proper trigonometrical calculation made, a line may be run by the 
compass, making a calculated deflexion from an ordinary compass 
or thumb line, which is demonstrably the shortest line between the 
two points, and therefore the straight line demanded. As the Com- 
missioner of the United States. Ellicott. has giycn the course and 
deflexion wanted. Ayith the calculati(m by Ayhich he arriA-ed at it, I 
do not think any other should be attempted, and I am Ayilling to 
proceed immediately Ayith that. I should be satisfied, myself, to co- 
operate Ayith you in a further inyestigation to find the source of the 
St. Clary's riyer, and a more exact demonstration of its locality; but 
T have no authority to concur in such oi)erations, and could not 
suffer myself to indulge one moment's thought about it; besides. I 
belieye the said source not only to be indeterminate, but indetermin- 
able b}' any geometrical or any physical process Ayhateyer. If the 



[Doc. No. 43.] 43 

river derived its supply of water from springs, that which furnished 
the most water in the course of the year might be found and de- 
clared to be the head spring, or that which happened to be the 
farthest from the mouth of the river. But, in fact, the river in 
question has its origin in a marshy country, of great extent, with 
few or no springs, deriving its waters from rain altogether ; of course, 
affording unequal supplies from any giv^en surface, in any given time. 
In such a case, the dispute could be settled by compromise only, 
and such a compromise was made in the most regular manner twenty- 
seven years ago, accepted with consent at the time by Georgia, and 
never complained of until now. 

It is my opinion that a better could not now be made by any 
persons whatever, nor can I believe that any cession was made of 
territor}^ belonging to Georgia. An adjustment of boundaries with 
Spain then can no more be considered a cession of territory belong- 
ing to a State, than with Great Britain noiv^ under the treaty of 
Ghent. To conclude, it is my deliberate opinion that we ought not 
to proceed any further at present, but separate, consult the author- 
ities by which we are constituted, and meet again in November to 
finish then. I am willing to concur with you as far as I can without 
compromitting myself. 

Pardon my bad writing: T am willing to do every thing in my 
power, and I conscientiously believe myself competent to what I 
have undertaken, both in mind and body; but if penmanship be a 
necessary requisite, I may retire from the undertaking with as much 
despatch as I should with satisfaction, having no motive whatever 
to influence me, but barely the determination to do my dutj^ as ac- 
curately as I possibly can, however roughl}'^ it may be. 

Permit me to declare my high esteem and cordial regard for 
yourself, and gratify me so far as to assure Governor Troup of my 
continued sentiments of admiration for his character. 

Your most obedient humble servant, 

TH. M. RANDOLPH. 
T. Spalding, Esq. Commissioner, ckc. 



Executive Department, Georgia, 

Milledgeville, 18th April, 1827. 

My Dear Sir: I received your despatch of the 10th instant this 
afternoon. I am not insensible to tlie many difficulties you have 
had to encounter in running the line: difficulties rendered support- 
able onh' by the harmonious and friendly intercourse which has 
been uniiiterruptedly maintained, and very much to my own gratifica- 
tion, between Governor Randolph and yourself. Reposing the high- 
est confidence in your patriotism and ability, it was already known 
to me that the rights and interests of Georgia would be sustained 
as they ought to be. and that, at your hands, they could suffer no 
detriment but from causes for which you could by no means be held 
responsible. It Avas equally well known, that if Georgia suffered 
injury by the agency of Governor Randolph, the fault or blame 
would not be his; he would willingly do Avrong to nobody. 

It was apprehended, on the receipt of your letter of the 12th 
ultimo, that there must be something imperative in the instructions 

43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 6 



44 [Doc. No. 43.] 

of the United States' Commissioner, which prohibited him from 
adopting the mound. It is now certain that his instructions, given 
in conformity with the act of Congress, limit him expressly, not 
to the head of the St. Mary's, but to the point agreed on by the 
United States and Spanish Commissioners, under the treaty of "95. 
You have discovered, to your own satisfaction at least, that the head 
of the St. Mary's is different from and south of. that point, and even 
south of the mound itself. There is no alternative now. but to 
adopt the i)roposition of Governor Tvandolph. and postpone, for the 
present, further operations, until the two Governments shall come 
to an understanding whether the line adopted by Messrs. Ellicott 
and Minor, under the influence of error and mistake, and in a spirit 
of compromise, shall be the true line, or whether that established by 
the charter of Georgia, the treaty of '83, the treaty of '95. and the 
Constitution of Georgia, shall be. 

The approach of the hot season, on a low and marshy country, 
abounding with insects, and exposing you and your party to disease, 
the expense of running and marking a line, Avhich may or may not be 
adopted by the two Governments, the temporary evil resulting from 
contacting jurisdictions to wdiich the establishment of such a line 
may give rise, besides the apparent countenance and sanction given 
to it by the act of Georgia, and my decided impression that the 
Legislature of Georgia will not consent to sanction that line, all 
concur in recommending the expediency of discontinuing your opera- 
tions for the present. It is true that the act of Congress cannot 
make that right which is essentially wrong: it cannot legalize contra- 
diction or inconsistency: it cannot, for the pur])ose of carrying into 
effect the treaty of "95. assume a point different from that assumed by 
the treaty. This would be a violation, not an execnition of the treaty. 
The United States had not the power, much less had Mr. Ellicott, 
to designate a point one mile north of the head of the St. Mary's. 
The United States and Spain, in carrying that treaty into effect, had 
not the power to do it, to the injury of a third party. Mr. Ellicott 
himself had no conception that he was vested with any discretion 
to do so. He sought the head of the St. ]\Iary's as the only true 
point; if he missed it. it will not be made a question whether Georgia 
and the United States shall take the treaty itself, or Mr. Ellicott's 
mistake, as their rule of conduct. 

Whilst, therefore, it was plain enough that (^ongress had adopted 
the mistake of ]Mr. Ellicott, it was sincerely hoped that the instruc- 
tions to Governor Randolph might so far deviate from the letter of 
the act as to have permitted him to adopt the letter of the treaty, 
rather than the letter of the act inconsistent with it; and the more so. 
as the one is the supreme law. the other not. It is not designed to 
enter upon a discussion of this matter here, but (in passing) it is 
well to remark that the T'nited States' Commissioner is under a mis- 
apprehension when he believes that Georgia has ac(]niesced for 
twenty-seven years in the correctness of the work of ]\Ir. Ellicott and 
Mr. Minor. Georgia has given no sign or demonstration of such ac- 
quiescence, either express or implied, within that time. On the con- 
trary, when any question occurred requiring any sign or demonstra- 
tion in relation to it, Georgia has invariably looked to the head or 
source of the St. Clary's as the true point ; and it is known to you. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 45 

that, many years since, lookino- to that source as the only true point, 
her Legislature had authorized connnissions charged with the ascer- 
tainment of the true head or source of that river, and with a view, as 
expressly stated in their resolutions, to the correction of any error 
which nia}' have been connnitted by ]\Ir. Ellicott. The results of 
those commissions were communicated to the War Department, for 
the information of the President. 

The President may believe himself authorized to conform the in- 
structions of the Commissioner to the terms of the treaty; if so, your 
operations can be renewed in the Fall. Otherwise, an opportunity 
must be afforded to the Congress to reconsider the subject, that the 
provisions of the act may be made to correspond with the provisions 
of the treaty. 

With great consideration, dear sir. 

Your friend and servant, 

GEORGE M. TROUP. 
To Thomas Spalding, Esq. 

Commissio7i€r\ die. 
Copied from the origiiial. 

J. G. BELL. Secretary, d-e. 



EXCAMP^IEXT IX THE WoODS, 

A^ear the junet w)i of Flint and Chattahoochie, 

Tuesday, April 10, 1827. 
Dear Sir: Without entering further into the discussion, at this 
time, of what ought to have been the boundary line between Georgia 
and Florida, I believe I shall but consult the interests of both by 
joining with you in extending the line between the junction of the 
Flint and the Chattachoochie rivers, and the point of our departure 
at St. ]Mary's. If, hereafter, the Governments we represent believe 
the object worthy of a more deliberate examination, I rely, with con- 
fidence, that justice will not be denied to the party that might be 
aggrieved hj our determination. And I beg of you to accept assur- 
ances of mv sincere respect and esteem. 

T. SPALDING. 
To Gov. Raxdolph, Commissioner, dc. de. 

EXCAMPMEXT ox THE WyTHLACOOCHIE, 

Between MeNeiVs and McBride's Lines. 

April 26, 1827. 

]\[y Dear Sir: Having this moment returned from the compass 
and chain part}^ I am the better reconciled to the manifest result of 
the intelligence communicated by having just found the return line 
int(?rsect the Wythlacoocliie twice upon this day; thereby leaving a 
^lip of land on its north and oast side belonging to Florida, and 
;uiother smaller slip on its opposite side belmiging to Georgia. The 
torrents of rain lately fallen, which bar our passage eastward from 
this, by the swell of small creeks, at present, have, of course swelled the 
Wythlacoochie also so greatly as to make long offsets, upon uneven 
and roughly covei-ed ground, absolutely necessary, and I left the sur- 
veyor employed in making them. He has. in person, swam the river 



46 [Doc. No. 43.] 

once, with every man of the party this time, and Avould have it to 
swim again twice more: indeed, it is by no means certainly otherwise 
than twice more in addition, if we were to deny him the facility of an 
offset, the error of which (and such operations are never Avithout 
error) must inevitably be carried on. augmenting M^ith the distance, 
to the eastern end of the line, as already agreed upon according to 
the previous understanding betAveen us of our respective authorities. 
Now, all our consolation liitherto has been derived from the hope 
that we should, in returning, strike so very close to the point of our 
original departure as to satisfy all minds, and put an end to ques- 
tions about boundaries older than the Government of Georgia itself, 
as much older as that is than our United States. All such hope being 
now extinguished, I cannot pass over this opportunity, hurried and 
constrained in conveniences as it is, to make it publicly known, for 
future benefit, that, at another and a healthier sea.son than that of 
the tropical rains, which Ave have lately borne Avithout any other roof 
than a very flimsy tent, it Avould be c|uite pleasant to ford tlie same 
river, not more than knee deep, at the very same places. The offset 
which became absolutely necessary at the Oclocknie. had already 
given us discouragement enough. 

This is the time for me to write. Avhat I have repeatedly said to 
you. that the President of the United States ordered the Secretary 
of War to give me the act of Congress, and the report of the com- 
missioners appointed in consequence of the obligatory provisions of 
the treaty between Spain and the Ignited States, of October, 1795, as 
all my instructions, accompanied Avith the usual injunctions of all 
possible economy in the expendit\ire of the appropriation, which a 
hope Avas expressed might be found more than sufficient, and a charge 
as to accountability, with a requisition to note and communicate all 
the information I might probably obtain, geographical or other, 
AA-hich might possibly be of use to the Government of the United 
States at any future time. I did myself raise the question about the 
meaning of the term " junction of the riA^ers," belieA'ing, before, that 
the geographical position of the tAvo ends of the line had been long 
ago settled, and unexpectedly finding that the eastern was disputed, 
I, naturally enough. thrcAv open that of the western also, by showing 
that it Avas fairly disputable : for Watson had. ex parte, determined 
it for Georgia, supposing the decision of Ellicott and Minor rejected, 
and McNeil had adopted AVatson's decision. Noav, Watson's mark 
of the Avestern extremity is many feet higher than that of ]McNeil, 
upon the same trees, of a kind Avhich cannot live out of Avater: and 
the latter is one mile, or perhaps more, to judge by the eye and report, 
Avithout measuring. beloAv the real " junction •' of the Avaters of the 
rivers, which have really been blended that distance above, at the 
point Avhere the banks before separate, and identifying the different 
rivers, have united. T did also giAe it as my private opinion, that 
the Spanish Avords used in the treaty of ITOn, had been falsely trans- 
lated : for it did not mean head springs, but source or origin of the 
river St. Mary's, (" nacimiento,") which makes a very important 
difference: for that river had its origin in very extensive marshes, 
which are supplied entirely by rain water, and not at all by springs; 
although, no doubt, some feeble head spring might be found to be 
the furthest off from the mouth of the river, and, possibly, further 



[Doc. No. 43.] 47 

south than the point agreed upon and designated by Ellicott and 
Minor as the geographical position of the true source of the river. 
But these are questions to be decided by higher powers and intelli- 
gence than ours, and I drop them altogether. I conclude, then, by 
assuring you, in writing, what I have alreadj'^ done often enough in 
speech, that my predilection would certainly be for Georgia on all 
questions, as I now very bitterl}' regret my not having settled there 
in 1803, as I deliberately then intended, were I not completely re- 
strained at all times, first by an enthusiastic republican honesty, and 
next by my feelings for the little State of Florida, which is now so 
very near its birth to a destiny very high indeed, if anticipations are 
allowable; founded upon the felicity of its climate, the fertility of 
its soil, and its most extraordinary hydrographical advantages for 
uniting, with facility and cheapness, the ocean and the gulf. 

Let me not omit to assure you that my proposal to discontinue pro- 
ceedings while we were still on the Apalachicola, proceeded from the 
extreme anxiety I had all along felt at never having received from the 
Department of War the report of Ellicott and Minor, the journal of 
the former, an authentic document, having been all along my sole 
guide ; and for the satisfaction I felt in the relief from that anxiety 
afforded by the declaration of Governor Troup, that Georgia would 
not be bound by any decision that we might make upon the ground the 
act of Congress had compelled me to take : for I did then, and I do 
now, sincererly believe that I was running much risk in proceeding 
throughout without authority, which could give right to any conclu- 
sion in which I was concerned, and which I might fail ultimately to 
receive in time, as it had been promised me immediately by a letter 
from the Department of War, dated December 23d last, and had not 
then or now arrived. I trust a'ou will not forget, what you have often 
acknowledged, and jMr. ]McBride has constantly confirmed, that the 
water was entirely too cold for him and his men to have carried chain 
and compass through the marsh of fifteen miles of uninterrupted 
length, at any time earlier in the spring than the first of March, when 
we commenced. 

I cannot let this opportunity pass without testifying zealously to 
the high moral and intellectual worth, the scientific attainments, the 
hardihood, perseverance, and determined resolution, with the excel- 
lent disposition for republican command, of that gentleman. Any 
unlucl^y choice of character for this party which you may have made, 
I forget in the strong feelings of esteem and kindly regard which I 
shall ever entertain for yourself, as also of gratitude and admiration 
for your charming family, now enjoying in tranquility all the de- 
lights of Sapelo, where you will soon have the felicity to join them. 

I part in perfect good will to all, forgiving that rudeness in some 
of your men, which is founded, perhaps, in temperament, but is, 
nevertheless, truly painful, in its effects, to men of mj^ age, who love 
quiet, and literature, and science, alone, in this world, after their own 
family. 

Permit me tlien, before I conclude, to express my very higli esteem 
for Mr. Bell, whose deportment, conduct, manners, and opinions, have 
been entirely unexceptionable to this hour from that of our leaving 
Darien. 



48 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

I Avill rej^ly to the latter part of your letter tomorrow. Avlien 
have more time, and shall have iriven more consideration to it. 
I am. my dear sir, 

Most sincerely, your friend. 

As well as vour most obd't serVt. 

T. M. RAXDOLPH, Sen. 
T. Spaldixg. Esq. Commissioner, djc. 

A true copy from the original. 

J. G. B. Secretary^ d'C. 



XeAR the WYTHr.ACOOCHlE. 

April 27. 1827. 

My dear Sir: Accept my thanks for the kindly sentiments con- 
tained in your letter of yesterday, in reply to mine communicating 
Gov. Troup's instructions. 

I certainly conceive that, from the nature of the country in which 
we have been acting, our labors could not have been carried on in the 
Avinter: and this I believe to have been the opinion also of Mr. Mc- 
Bride. 

Will you permit me to say, in the closing of our labors, that the 
direct co;itrol of our men in camp was what, in the commencement of 
our undertaking, was as little in my exjiectation as in my inclination, 
and that our situation did not admit any careful selection of persons 
for the service. 

The boisterous hilarity of some, I have too often felt to be little 
reconcileable to the tastes of either yourself or myself: but I hope and 
believe that soon all that was wrong will be forgotten, and only what 
may be pleasant to remember, will be remembered by either of us. 

For myself, my dear sir, anxious for your esteem, I shall be proud 
of 3'our recollections. 

"With esteem and respect, &c. 

To Gov. Randolph. T. SPALDIXG. 



De\\\ktmex'i of "War, Mat/ 22, 1827. 
Sir: I have had the honor to receive the copies of the correspond- 
ence between you and the Georgia Commissioners, and regret the cir- 
cumstances which have made it necessary to discontinue your opera- 
tions in running the dividing line betAveen Georgia and Florida. As 
your duties, therefore, have ceased for the present, you can return to 
your home as soon as it may suit your convenience to do so. Previous 
to Avhich, however, I request your attention to the case of Major 
Baley, Avhich was, some time since, referred to you for your examina- 
tion and report. 

T have, &c. &c. 

JAMES BARBOUR. 
To Thomas M. Randolph, Esq. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 49 

Message from the President of the United States, transmitting copies 
of communications from the Governor of Georgia, relating to the 
line dividing that State from the Territory of Florida. 

To tlic Senate and House of Representatives of the United States: 

Washington, 22<Z January, 1828. 

By the report of the Secretary of War. and the documents from 
that department, exhibited to Congress at the commencement of their 
present session, they were advised of the measures taken for carrying 
into execution the act of 4th May, 182G, to authorize the President of 
the United States to run and mark a line dividing the Territory of 
Florida from the State of Georgia, and of their unsuccessful result: 
I now transmit to Congress copies of communications received from 
the Governor of Georgia, relating to that subject. 

JOHX QUIXCY ADAMS. 



Executive Department, 

Milledgeville, ^Oth Nov. 1827. 
Sir : On the question which has arisen between the State of Georgia 
and the United States, during the recent effort to mark the boundary 
line between this State and the Territory of Florida, it will, it is pre- 
sumed, be satisfactory to you to examine, before the meeting of Con- 
gress, the evidence on which the State relies to establish the fact, that 
the source of the St. Mary's is the lake or spring from which issues 
the most southern branch of that river, and therefore, the spot at 
which must terminate the straight line to be drawn from the junction 
of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, according to the second article 
of the treaty between the United States and Spain of the 27th of 
October, 1795. The subject having been brought before the General 
Assembly by my predecessor, and not yet acted on by them, it would 
be improper for me to do more, in transmitting that evidence, than to 
request your attention to it : no doubt being entertained that its force 
and importance will l)e duly weighed. 

I have the honor to be. 

With perfect consideration. 

Your obedient servant, 

JOHN FORSYTH. 
The President of the United States. 



Copy of the report of John McBnde, Esq. relative to the source of 

the St. Mary^s nver. 

Eatonton, August 7, 1827. 
Sir: Agreeably to your instructions of the 20th of June last, re- 
quiring me. under the direction of Thomas Spalding, Esq., Commis- 
sioner, to ascertain the true head or source of the St. Mary's river, I 
proceeded immediately to Darien. in order to join !Mr. Spalding. For 



50 [Doc. No. 43.] 

reasons which he has detailed to you, Mr. Spalding believed it un- 
necessaiy that he should accompany me in the tour, and superintend, 
l^ersonally, the discharge of the duties confided to us. After receiv- 
ing from him every requisite aid in procuring supplies and transpor- 
tation, and, at my request, his written instructions, I repaired, with- 
out delay, to the region which I Avas to examine, and arrived at Fil- 
man's on the 3d of July. 

By reference to the chart which accompanies this report, it will be 
seen that the St. Mary's is formed by three principal branches — the 
north, the west, and the south. To ascertain the source of each of 
these branches, their length, and relative magnitude at their points 
of confluence with each other, was considered the object of my mis- 
sion. And, having learned that the north and south branches unite 
about four miles below the mound A, or Commissioners' Encamp- 
ment, I proceeded to that point, and carefully measured the width, 
depth, and velocity of the current of each branch, both at the junc- 
tion and about half a mile above it. From the mean result of these 
observations, it appears that the south branch discharges 1,30*J, and 
the north branch 993 cubic feet of water per minute. Hence, the 
south branch is to the north as 1.309 to 993, or very nearlj- as 40 to 29. 
A traverse was commenced near the junction, and continued up the 
south branch to the outlet of Lake Spalding, about thirty miles, and 
another traverse four miles in length, connecting Lake Spalding with 
Lake Randolph. These are beautiful lakes of transparent water; the 
former supposed to be nine miles in circumference; the latter, twelve. 
As no soundings could be made, their depth is unknown. The sources 
of the south and Avest branch being thus ascertained, the volume of 
water contained in the north and Avest branches was then measured 
at their junction, and the folloAving result obtained: 

Cubic feet of Avater discharged by the north branch in one minute, 159 
Do. do. Avest branch do. 238 

The fact is then clearly established, that, of the three branches into 
Avhich that St. MarA^'s is divided, the south is the greatest, and the 
north, is the least, though it is represented by Messrs. Ellicott and 
Minor as the i^rincipal. The only criteria for determining the prin- 
cipal branch of a I'iver nuist be in length, volume of Avater, and gen- 
eral direction: and these all coincide in the south branch of the St. 
Mary's. It is three miles longer than either of the other branches, 
and discharges one-third more water than both of them together. Its 
general direction agrees Avith that of the lower section of the river 
nmch better than either of the other branches. If a line be clraAvn 
from Point Pet re to the confiuence of the north and south branches, 
and indefinitely produced toward the southwest, it will pass through 
Lake Spalding, the source of the south bi-anch. 

It had been intended to make a running survey of the north branch 
also, but, from the very satisfactory nature of the information already 
obtained, together with some previous knoAvledge of the sources of the 
north branch, this intention Avas abandoned, believing that a further 
examination, Avhile it Avould be attended with additional expense, 
could be productive of no real utility. 

In collecting information respecting the topography of the countrj'' 
Avhich it had become my dut}' to examine, I availed myself of the aid 
Avhich could be alTorded by the iuhabitants. Thougli the population 



[Doc. No. 43.] 51 

is extremely sparse, yet no country is better known than this. Resort- 
ing thither for tlie benefits of the chase, and for the pasturage of 
immense herds of cattle, their knoAvledge of the country is extensive 
and accurate; and experience has proven that information derived 
from them may be safely confided in. Messrs. Cone, Brown, Barbour. 
Jernigan, and Sparkman, of Camden county, and Filman, EUisj 
Parrish, and Long, of Florida, have freely communicated any infor- 
mation that has been requested of them ; and I have the satisfaction ot 
being a_ble to inform your Excellency, that, in support of my own opin- 
ion, chiefly founded upon actual admeasurement, these men have no 
doubt but that the north branch of the St. Mary's is less than either of 
the other two, and that it can have no just pretensions to being con- 
sidered the principal. By Mr. Filman, Avho lives within half a mile 
of the Pine Log, I was informed that, at the time of making this 
examination, the whole of the water in the north branch was afforded 
by Alligator creek, and that, at the Pine Log, the channel was dry and 
dusty. 

The United States' and Spanish Commissioners, who, in ISOO, at- 
tempted to ascertain the source of the St. Mary's, in ascending the river 
with their canoes, passed the junction of the north and south branches, 
considering the former as the principal. That those Commissioners 
should have made an erroneous determination, may be attributed to 
the deceptive appearance of the two branches at their confluence, and 
to- the peculiarly unfavorable season in which their investigations 
were made. The channel of the north branch is wider than that of 
the south. Its depth is greater, and its water of a dark reddish color. 
At the point of disemboguement the south branch is a beautiful 
limpid stream, whose narrow channel and transparent water render 
it, apparently, one-third less than the north, but its velocity is one 
hundred and sixteen feet per minute, while that of the north branch 
is only thirty-eight. The disparity of width in these branches is ac- 
counted by the difference of the countries in which they have their 
sources. That in whiclx the south branch rises is gently undulating, 
and the transparency and low temperature of the water prove its 
origin to be principally in springs. The vicinity of the sources of 
the north branch is frequently an extended plane, with but little 
elevation or depression, which, in rainy seasons, is completely inun- 
dated for many miles; and these vast sheets of water, being drained 
into the north branch, increase its volume to a torrent, which forms 
a channel much wider than the south branch. When the United 
States' and Spanish Commissioners were here in February. 1800, 
]Mr. Ellicott, in his Journal, informs us that the swamps, at that 
season of the year, were *' al)solutely impenetrable," in consequence 
of the preceding Winter's rains. We cannot, therefore, be surprised 
at their failure to make a correct determination. 

The loss sustaned by Georgia in running the boundary, according 
to the agreement of those Commissioners, is a triangle, whose base 
is 157 miles, its perpendicular 30 miles, and area 2.335 square miles, 
or 1,507,200 acres. 

Respecting the general character of the country through which 
our southern boundary passes, it may be remarked, that, in proceed- 
ing M'estwardly. by the Pine Log, for sixty-five miles, the soil is ex- 
tremely barren, and swamps, cypress ponds, bay galls, and saw pal- 
metto, abundant. The Suwanee and Allapaha rivers are found in this 



52 [Doc. Xo. 43.J 

section; but there is little land in their vicinity that can ever reward 
the agriculturist for his labors. On approaching the Wythlacoochie. 
the face of the country is much altered. Here it becomes more undu- 
lating, and lime pits and lakes of pellucid water are skirted by slips 
of fertile land. From this, the soil is remarkable only for its sterility 
for twenty-five miles, and until we approach the Ocilla. where are 
found tracts of excellent land, interspersed with lakes and deep 
morasses. The saw palmetto and cypress ponds here disappear, but 
the former barrenness of soil continues generally throughout the 
remaining part of the boundary, except in the vicinity of the Micka- 
suky and Yamonia lakes, the Ucklockanne river, and Attapulgas 
creek, where large bodies of rich loam will repaj' the purchaser for 
his adventure, and the laborer for his toil. 

With considerations of respect, your P'xcellency's most obedient 
servant, 

JOHN McBRIDE, Surveyor. 

Gov. Troup, Milledgeville. 



Notes nnd Estimates made in ascertaimng the volume of the several 
hranehes of the St. J/ary-s river. 

No. 1. Notih Branchy {Junction C.) 

Width - 39.6 ft. 

Mean depth . . _ . - ,666 

Velocity of the surface per minute - - 44.2-2* 

To find the volume : 

V44.22— 1=5.649. 
5.649X5.649=81.9, the velocitv of the boitom and sides. 
44.22+31.9 

=.38.06. the mean velocity. 

2 

And 39.6X.G66X38.6= 1003.77 cubic feet, the volume. 

No. 2. South Iiran(n. {Jiinetion C.) 

Width - - - - - 26.4 ft. 

Mean depih - - - - .5 

Velocity of the surface per minute - 12(). "2 

To find the volume : 

\/ 126.72— 1 = 10.257. 

10.257X10.257=105.2, the velocitv of the bottom and sides. 

126.72+105.2 

=115.96, the mean volocit}'. 

2 
And 26.4X.5X115.96=1530.('.7 cul)ic feet, the volume. 

* To olttMiii the mean velocity of a ciinent from that of its surface, Mr. L'ultou 
has obliKiiifrly fiirnislu'd me with X\\v following nile: in which ./■ represents the 
velocity of the surface, anrl r that of the bottom and sides. 

xXz 
V'.r — l = Vc And =the mean velocity. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 53 

iVo. 3. NortJi Branch., {half a mile above Xo. 1.) 

AVidth - - - - - 40.26 ft. 

Mean depth ----- . 697 

VelocitA" of the surface per minute - 40. 92 
To find the mean velocity: 

V40.92— 1 = 5.4 very near. 
5.4X5.4=29.10, the velocity of the bottom and sides. 
40.92 -f 29.16 

— =35.04, the mean velocity. 

o 

And 40.26 X. 697X35.04= 983.26 cubic feet, the volume. 

No. 4. South Branch, {half a mile above No. 2.) 

Width - . - . . 18.56 ft. 

^lean depth - - - - - 1. 14 

Velocity of the surface per minute - 64. 68 
To find the mean velocity : 

V 64.68— 1 = 7.042. 
7.042X7.042=49.58, the velocity at the bottom and sides. 
64.68+49.58 • 

=57.13. the mean velocity. 

2 

■ And 18.56X1.14X57.13 = 1208.67 cubic feet, the volume. 

No. 5. North Branch., {Junction of N. and ^Y. Branches.) 

Width - - - - - 18.48 ft. 

Mean depth - - - - - 1.03 

Velocity of the surface per minute - 11.22 

To find the mean velocity: 

\/11.22— 1=2.35, nearly. 
2.35X2.35=5.52, the velocity at the bottom. 
11.22+5.52 

cz8.37. the mean velocity. , 

2 

And 18.48X1.03X8.37=159.3 cubic feet the volume. 

No. 6. AVest branchy {Junction of the N. and W. Branches.) 

Width 11.22 ft. 

Mean depth - - - - - .32 

Velocity of the surface per minute - 74. 58 
To find the mean velocity: 

V 74.58— 1=7.636. 
7.636X7.636=58.3. velocity at the bottom and sides. 
74.58+58.3=66.64^ the mean velocity. 



54 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

And 11.22 X. 32X60.44=288.54 cubic feet the volume. 

Result of Xo. 1. X. B. - - - - 1003.78 

Result of Xo. o. X. B. - - - - 983. 26 



'Sum .... 1987.04 



Mean . . . . 993.52 

Result of Xo. 2, S. B. - - - - 1530. 67 

Result of Xo. 4, S. B. - - - - 1208. 77 



Sum .... 2739.44 



Mean .... 1369.72 

As 1369 : 993 :: 4 : 2.9; 
Or. S. B. : X. B. : : 4 : 2.9. : or, as 40 to 29. 
Result of Xo. 5. X. B. - - -' - 159. 3 

Result of Xo. 6. W. B. - - - - 238. 54 

As 238.5 : 159.3 :: 3 : 2: 
Or, W. B. : X. B. : : 3 : 2. 
Respectfully submitted. 

JOHN McBRIDE, Suroeyor. 
October 1, 1827. 



An act to prevent the survei/iag or granting of certain lands either 
under head rights^ or in any other toay^ and for other purposes. 

Whereas the dividing line between the State of Georijia and Florida 
has not \Qi been rim and marked, but, when run, must be from the 
head or source of St. ^Mary's river straight to the confluence of Flint 
and Chattahoochie rivers; and whereas it is believed that the said 
line must, and of right ought to, commence from the head or source 
of the south branch of St. Mary's river, in which event a large por- 
tion of territory will be included within the limits of Camden county, 
and subject to be surveyed and granted as vacant lands: 

Sec. 1. Be it therefore enacted hy the Senate and House of Repre- 
sentatives of the State of Georgia in General Assemhly met. and it 
is hereby enacted by the authority of the samCj That it shall not be 
lawful for any portion of the territory lying between a direct line 
from Ellicott's Mound upon the north branch of St. Mary's river to 
the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, and the dividing 
line which may hereafter be run and marked between the State of 
Georgia and Florida, to be surveyed and granted as vacant land, or 
in any other way, or for any other purpose, imtil provision therefor 
shall be made by law. And that all surveys which sliall l)e so made 
shall be. and the sauie are hereby, declared null and void. 

Sec. 2. A?id be it further enncted by the authority aforesaid^ That, 
when the said line shall be run and marked, if any portion of the ter- 
ritory shall be included within the State of Georgia, which may be 
claimed and held under and by virtue of a grant or grants from the 
United States, upon purchases made previous to the passage of this 
act, then, and in that case, the said grant or grants shall l)e, and they 
are hereby, declared good and valid to all intents and purposes: 
Provided, The T'^nited States shall, and tlo. within two vears from 



[Doc. No. 43.] 55 

the time of rniinino- and niarkino- said line, pay to the State of Georgia 
the amount for which the territor\'^ so hekl and granted may have 
been sold by the United States. 

IRBY HUDSON, 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

THOMAS STOCKS, 

President of the Senate. 
Assented to, Dec-eniber 24, 1S27. 

John Fousyth, Governor. 



The Governor of Georgia to the President of the United States. 

Executive Department, Georgia, 

Milledgeville^ Deceinber 29, 1827. 

Sir: I have been requested by the General Assembly to open a 
correspondence with you, in order to facilitate the adjustment of 
the boundary line between this State and the Territory of Florida. 
It is well understood here, that until the act of Congress, passed the 
4th of May, 1826, authorizing the President to run and mark a line 
dividing Florida from Georgia, is altered or repealed, the Chief 
Magistrate of the Union has not power to comply with the just 
expectations of the State in relation to its southern boundary. This 
communication is made, therefore, under the expectation that it will 
be laid before Congress, with such recommendations as the respective 
rights of the State and of the United States may, in your judgment, 
require. The subject is of deep interest to this State, not from the 
value of the land, the title to which is dependent upon the decision of 
it, but because the description of the boundary is a part of our Con- 
stitution. To the Union it is of little moment, except as it affords a 
fair occasion to consult frankly the wishes of one of its members, and 
to establish a character for liberality to the individual State, of far 
greater importance than the acquisition of a few hundred thousand 
acres if arid territory. 

It is one, too, on which even a concession to the State, if the right 
were doubtful, is recommended by the consideration that the land 
which would be given up will remain, although in a different form, 
a portion of the United States, and of the resources of the Union. 

Addressing myself to the Government of the Union, to whom the 
Territroy of Florida now belongs, no doubt is entertained that a dem- 
onstration of the right of the State will be followed by a prompt 
acknowledgment, and such legislative provisions as may be neces- 
sary to secure the full enjoyment of it. The southern limits of Geor- 
gia depend, 1st. Upon the charter to the Lords Proprietors of Caro- 
lina, of 1C)63; 2dly. Upon the proclamation of the King of Great 
Britain of 1763, establishing the boundarj'' between Georgia and the 
two Floridas; and the King's commission to Sir James Wright, of 
1764; Bdly. Upon the treaties between the United States and Great 
Britain, of the 30th of November, 1782, and the 3d of September, 
1783. 

Confining myself to the southern boundary of the State according 
to the territorial limits fixed in the compact with the United States, 



56 [Doc. No. 43.] 

of 1802. it is a line begining at the most southern branch of the St. 
Mary's river; thence, up the said river, to its source; thence, in a 
direct line, to the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers. 
Subsequent to the treaty of 1782, Spain having obtained from Britain 
a cession of the Floridas Avithout any description of limits, was dis- 
posed to make territorial pretensions inconsistent with our rights. 
The treaty of 1795. concluded at San Lorenzo by_ Mr. Pinckney and 
the Duke of Alcudia, put an end to these pretensions. The 2d article 
of the treaty, conformably to the instructions of Mr. Jefferson, then 
Secretary of State, under General Washington's administration, de- 
scribes the line between Florida and the United States (acting for 
Georgia) in the words used in the treaty of peace of 1782 between 
the United States and Great Britain. For the purj^ose of preventing 
disputes, and to produce an immediate good effect on the Indians on 
the borders of Georgia and Florida. Mr. Pinckney introduced, with- 
out instructions, into the treaty, an article, the 3ci, providing for the 
immediate demarcation of the boundary line described in the 2d 
article. 

This article required the appointment of a Commissioner and Sur- 
veyor by each Government, who were to meet at Natchez, within six 
months from the date of the ratification of the convention, and to run 
and mark the line according to the preceding article; they were to 
make plats, and to keep journals of their proceedings, which were 
to be considered a part of the convention, and to have the same force 
as if inserted therein. A Commissioner and Surveyor were appointed 
by the United States to execute these stipulations. It is not neces- 
sary to detail all the circumstances which occurred from the meeting 
of the American Commissioner with the Spanish officer, who was 
said to be the Commissioner of Spain, to the period when the work 
was finally interrupted and left unfinished ; which, by some fatality, 
happened precisely at the point where the present southern boifnclary 
of Georgia begins on the Chattahoochie. It is sufficient for the pres- 
ent purpose to recall to your recollection these facts, resting upon the 
assertion of the Commissioner of the United States — that every arti- 
fice was used by the Spanish Governor of Louisiana, who is stated to 
have been the Commissioner of the King of Spain, to prevent the 
commencement of the demarcation; that every obstacle he could 
secretly interpose was presented, to delay the execution of the work: 
that, by the dishonorable intrigues of the Spanish authorities with 
the Indians residing in the vicinity of the line to be marked, and their 
disregard of the provisions contained in the 3d article of the treaty, 
they at last succeeded in compelling the American Commissioner to 
abandon the work, and leave it, as it has continued to this day. incom- 
plete. The State now asks from Congress the fulfillment of the stip- 
ulations made for her in 1795. with Spain, the completion of the 
work, not completed because Spain was unfaithful to her engage- 
ments. 

The current of events, favorable to the repose and to the prosper- 
ity of the Union, have placed it in the power of Congress to do imme- 
diate justice. It is not now necessary for you. sir, to prosecute a 
painful and tedious negotiation with a Government most unwilling 
to understand the ju-;t claims of others, and procrastinating, through 
policy, the acknowledgment of them when they can no longer be 



[Doc. No. 43.] 57 

denied. The United States stand in the place of Spain, hold the title 
of that Government, and no other, to the Territory of Florida ; and 
they have only to satisfy themselves what Spain could justly claim, 
in a controversy with this State, under the convention of San Loren- 
zo. That convention, requiring a direct line to be drawn between 
two unchanged geographical points, does not seem susceptible of con- 
troversy; and were the subject now, for the first time, agitated, none 
could be anticipated. But a difficulty is known to exist, and is to be 
found in a peculiar provision of the before mentioned act of Con- 
gress of the 4th of May, 18t>6. 

The motive for introducing that provision is perfectly understood, 
and duly respected : it was intended to prevent, what it has produced, 
delay and discussion. The provision is, that the line to be so run 
(dividing Florida from Georgia) and marked, shall be run straight 
from the junction of said rivers Chattahoochie and Flint, to the point 
designated as the head of St. Mary's 'nrei\ by the Commissioners 
appointed under the third artirle of the treaty of friendship, naviga- 
tion, &c. &c. between the United States and Spain, made at San 
Lorenzo, &c. &c. This provision was founded on the belief that the 
point designated as the head of St. Mary's teas the source of that 
river. This belief entertained here as well as at Washington, recent 
and accurate examination has shewn to be unfounded. The evidence 
relied on by the State, on this point, is already in your hands; the 
chart of the St. Mary's, i:)repared by Mr. McBride, and his report of 
the examination made by him for the source or head of that river. 
The supposition on which the proviso in the act of Congress was 
founded being shewn to be erroneous, no disposition can exist to per- 
sist in retaining it, to the injury of the State, unless the right of Con- 
gress to insert it is clearly shewn, and it is required by their obliga- 
tions to the other States."^ If Spain were now the party interested, 
it is scarcely possible that, in utter disregard of the obligations of 
truth and justice, she should insist that the line should be run and 
marked to the point desir/nated as the head of the St. Mary's, by the 
Commissioner appointed under the third article of the convention 
of 1795: on the hypothesis that Spain was still the owner of the 
Floridas, and so forgetful of honor as to make such a demand, by 
what argument could it be sustained? It would be asserted, that 
the acts of the Commissioners appointed under the third article, had 
become part of the convention, and was as obligatory as if inserted 
in it. This assertion is true 07ily of those acts of the Commissioners 
which they were authorized by the third article to perform. They 
were authorized to ru7i and 7}iark a line: has it been done? It has 
not : more than 150 miles of the line is yet to be run and marked. To 
meet this state of facts, it might be asserted that, it being found im- 
practicable to run and mark the line at that time, the Commissioners 
agreed upon the two terminating points, and described, in their ]:)lats 
and journals, the direction of the line to be hereafter run and marked ; 
and that the head of St. Mary's was thus agreed to be within a certain 
distance of a mound raised. " Were the Commissioners appointed for 
this purpose? Certainlv not: they were appointed to run and mark 
a line, not to establish the points between which the line should, at 
some distant time, be run and marked. By what authority did the 
Commissioners exercise this power? It is not given by the third 



58 [Doc. No. 43.] 

article of the treaty: no agreement made by them is binding upon 
either of the powers who appointed them, unless subsequently rati- 
fied by both. Such an agreement as the one made was not within the 
spirit of the article, but is directly contrary to it. since it substitutes 
an artifi(;ial object as the point of termination for the natural one 
fixed on in the convention, and confessedly changes the line. The 
extent of the agreement is stated by the American Commissioner, 
Ellicott. in these words: '* It was therefore agreed that the termina- 
•• tion of a line, supposed to be drawn N. 45 E. G40 perches from the 
" mound B, should be taken as a point to or near which a lino should 
" be drawn from the mouth of Flint river, which line, Avhen drawn, 
" should be final, and considered as the permanent boundary between 
"the United States and his Catholic Majesty: provided, it passed 
"not less than one mile north of mound B; but, if. on experiment, it 
" should be found to pass within less than one mile north of the said 
" mound, it should be corrected to carry it to that distance." No 
remarks on the peculiar character of the line described are deemed 
necessary; the passage is quoted to show that Ellicott transcended 
his authority, and did what was not binding on his Government, 
unless subsequently ratified by it. It is presumed he had no instruc- 
tions to make such an agreement; if he had. this State denies that 
the convention of 1795 authorized them to be given. 

AVas this agreement ratified by the two jiowers prior to the cession 
of Florida by Spain to the United States? It is taken for granted 
that it was not. If not, the question remains as it did under the con- 
vention of 1795. The stipulations of the third article are yet to be 
performed, and the point to Avhich the line from the junction of the 
Flint and Chattahoochie is to be run is to be determined by referring 
to the second article of the convention, not by an a]>peal to the agree- 
ment of Ellicott. It is a geographical point, unvarying and un- 
varied; not the creation of man's labor. It is a spot described by the 
two Governments; not that substituted by their subordinate, unau- 
thorized, agents. The agreement of Ellicott was not obligatory, 
even upon himself. Prior to the running and marking the line, had 
any error, geographical or astronomical, been made by accident, it 
was in the power, and it was the duty, of the Commissioner to correct 
it, as soon as it was discovered. Can it be pretended that, if Ellicott 
had discovered, immediately after the supposed source of the St. 
Mary's was agreed upon, that the spring or lake, from whence issued 
the southern branch, was the true source of the river, he was bound 
to abide by the judgment he had formed on imperfect information, 
and to run and mark the line contrary to the provisions of the con- 
vention, to the injury of his country? If the line had been com- 
pleted by Ellicott. under the mistaken impression entertained by 
him of the true source of the river, and the mistake had been clearly 
ascertained, it would have given the General Government great sat- 
isfaction to have been able to rectify, by a negotiation with Spain, 
the error committed. Called upon by Georgia, would the General 
Government have hesitated to represent to Spain that a just Govern- 
ment woidd best consult its honor and its interest, bv rectifying, Avith 
frankness, an error committed by its inferior officers? Can it be 
doubted that the United States would have seized, with avidity, the 
first occasion to oblige Spain to surrender to Georgia territory held 



[Doc. Xo.43.] ' 59 

in consequence of such an error ? If such would probably have been 
the course of the General Government, had the error been consum- 
mated b}^ the running and marking of the line. I leave you to con- 
sider what would have been their conduct, had Spain, remaining 
OAvner of the territory, obstinately persisted in claiming to have it 
run and marked according to Ellicott's agreement, after the mistake 
committed by him had been discovered and exposed. The United 
States, tracing the failure to complete the work to its source, might 
have overwhelmed Spain by justly deserved reproaches for disgrace- 
fully attempting to take advantage of its own infidelity to sacred 
engagements, by indignant recitals of the intrigues and artifices used, 
the treachery displayed, from the meeting of the Commissioners at 
Natchez until Ellicott was driven from the Chattahoochie. I shall 
be pardoned for supposing the Government of Spain would have ex- 
posed itself to rebuke, by advancing such claims. The possibility has 
been admitted, to bring fairly into view the peculiar position of the 
United States in relation to this question. The trustees of Georgia, 
who arranged the convention of San Lorenzo, are the holders, by pur- 
chase, of the title of Spain under that convention. In this their 
present position, their former relation being necessarily remembered, 
no pretension can be consistently made by the United States, which 
would have been disputed if made by Spain, while the Floridas be- 
longed to that power. Xo claim of Georgia, which the United States 
would then have seriously pressed upon Spain, can be honorably re- 
sisted by the United States holding the property as a cession from 
that power. Above all, it would be the extremity of disgrace, if the 
Federal Government should seek to take advantage of an error com- 
mitted by its authority, while acting as the guardian of the rights of 
this State, when Providence has placed it in its power to correct the 
error by a simple exertion of its own will. 

The accompanying copy of an Executive message to the General 
Assembly of this State, and of an act passed by that body, are for- 
warded, that they may be presented, with the documents heretofore 
transmitted, to the consideration of Congress, whenever you shall 
deem it proper to bring the subject of the boundary line between 
Florida and Georgia before them. 

I am, sir, very respectfully, your obed't servant, 

JOHN FOESYTH. 

John Q. Adams, President of the United States. 



Message from the President of the United States, transmitting, in 
compliance with a resolution of the Senate of the eleventh instant, 
a report from the Secretary of State, with copies of instructions, 
<&c. to Andrew Ellicott, Commissioner for running the line between 
the United States and Spain. 

To the Senate of the United States: 

■ Washington, Fehruary 14, 1828. 
In compliance with a resolution of the Senate of the 11th instant, 
requesting copies of the instructions to Andrew Ellicott, Commis- 
43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 7 



60 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

sioner for running the line between the United States and Spain, and 
of any journal or report of the Commissioners, I communicate here- 
with a report from the Secretary of State, with the documents re- 
quested, so far as they are found in the files of that department. 

JOHN QUIXCY ADAMS. 



Department of State, 
Washington^ February 13, 1828. 

The Secretary of State, to whom has been referred, by the Presi- 
dent, the resolution of the 11th instant, requesting him " to com- 
municate to the Senate copies of the instructions of the Government 
of the United States to Andrew Ellicott, Esq. Commissioner on the 
part of this Government for running the line between the United 
States and Spain, under the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real, and of 
any journal or report made by the said Andrew Ellicott and the 
Commissioner of Spain, of the execution of the said commission, or 
such parts thereof as may be communicated without injury to the 
public service,'* has the honor to report, herewith, the instructions 
requested, contained in a letter from Timothy Pickering, Secretary 
of State, under date the 14th day of September. 1796, addressed to 
Andrew Ellicott, Commissioner, and Thomas Freeman, Surveyor, 
to run and mark the line between the United States and Spain, in 
conformity with the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real. 

A search had been several times heretofore made, without success, 
for the report of which a copy is requested. When it was known 
that the Senate would call for the report, a careful and thorough 
research was made for it, but it has been alike unsuccessful. The 
joint or separate report of the Commissioners, if it were ever made, 
is not now to be found on the files of the Department of State. It 
apj)ears from a printed journal of Mr. Ellicott, published in 1803, 
giving an account of the proceedings of the Commissioners in run- 
ning the line, (page 278,) that the astronomical part of the boundar}"^ 
being completed, it only remained to make out the report, with the 
maps or charts of the line. As a proper place for performing that 
business, the Commissioners agree to repair to the south end of Cum- 
berland island, where they could be more retired, and would be less 
interrupted by company. From a letter addressed by Mr. Ellicott 
to the Secretary of State, dated at Cumberland island, on the 22d 
March, 1800, (of which a copy is also herewith transmitted,) it ap- 
pears that they accordingly did retire to that island, for the purpose 
of completing that report; that .they were actually engaged in the 
preparation of it ; and that Mr. Ellicott expected it would be com- 
pleted the week after the next succeeding the date of his letter. 
Whether, in point of fact, it was finished, and transmitted to the 
Department of State, cannot now be here ascertained. 

A letter has been recently addressed from this Department to the 
Minister of the United States in Spain, directing him to procure a 
copy of the report, if it be among the archives of the Spanish 
Government. 

All which is respectfully submitted. 

H. CLAY. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 61 

Colonel Pickering^ Secret ai^ of State^ to Mr. Ellicott. 

Department of State, 
Philadelphia.) September 14, 1796. 

Andrew Ellicott, Commissioiier, r . ,. 
rcy „ TT. ' o ^ Instructions. 

iHOMAS 1<reeman, Survcyor, 

To Andretv Ellicott^ Commissioner., and Thhmas Freeman., Surveyor., 
on the part of the United States, for running and marking the 
southern 'boundary line lohich divides their territory from the 
Spanish Colonies of East and West Florida: 

You will receive herewith a copy of the treaty of friendship, limits, 
and navigation, concluded between the United States of America 
and his Catholic Majesty, as finally ratified on both sides, and pro- 
claimed by the President of the United States; together with the 
second and third articles of the treaty transcribed from the original 
in the Spanish language. 

In contemplating the mode of carrying into execution these two 
articles which respect the southern boundary, it has been considered 
that the country through which the line is to be run belongs, for the 
most part, to the native Indians, and is, of course, a wilderness. 
Hence many difficulties may attend an attempt to run and maric one 
continued boundary line from the Mississippi to the St. Mary's. 
Nevertheless, if the Indians will allow it to be done, and the nature 
of the country admits of it, you are to run and mark such a con- 
tinued boundary line. If the Indians are averse to the measure, and 
oppose your proceeding, you must stop as soon as you find a further 
advance would hazard your safety, or a breach of our friendsliip 
with any tribe. But the Creeks have expressly stipulated a free 
passage of the Commissioners, and their followers, to run and mark 
the boundary line through their territory; and the Choctaws prob- 
ably may, on the application of the Commissioners, also give the like 
permission as it respects their country. However, if either the op- 
position of the Indians, or the impracticability of the country itself, 
through which you must pass, should render the running a continued 
line impossible, or extremely tedious and difficult, then the next best 
thing must be attempted ; that is, accurately to fix the latitude of the 
boundary line at the eastern bank of the Mississippi, and to run and 
mark the line thence as far eastward as the Indian title has been, 
by an^' regular and lawful means, extinguished, either under the 
British or Spanish Governments. If the Indians and the nature of 
the country permit you to proceed further, you will go on as far it 
shall be practicable. And if, from any cause, you are obliged to 
leave any part of the line unsurveyed and unmarked, you will at 
least ascertain where it strikes the great rivers, from the Mississippi 
to the Apalachicola. 

From the junction of the Flint river with the Apalachicola, the 
boundary line, ceasing to be a parallel of latitude, must, if possible, 
be run and marked through its whole course, to the head of the river 
St. Mary's. 



62 [Doc. No. 43.] 

So far as the boiindarv line is a parallel of latitude, you will as- 
certain the same with all practicable accuracy, and erect permanent 
monuments of stone, where attainable, and at other places, of earth. 
And in the latter case, it may be eligible to plant in the ground large 
posts of cedar, or other durable wood, two or three at each monu- 
ment, in the range of the line, and to bury them up with several feet 
of earth, so that by being concealed they may not be removed, and 
by an exclusion of the air^ they may not be liable to rot. The mounts 
oJ earth may be oblong in the range of the boundary line. Where 
cedar or other very durable wood is found, a large post may be 
erected in the centre of each mount, standing above ground, with the 
words United States cut on one side, and Florida, or Spanish Florida. 
on the other. 

From the Apalachicola to the head of St. ^Mary's, you Avill, at con- 
venient distances, erect the like monuments of stone or earth. 

In every continued line through a wood you will designate the 
same by marked trees, as usual. 

The longitudes of all the places where monuments shall be erected 
are to be ascertained with all possible exactness. 

The third article of the treaty recjuires that the Commissioners 
make plats and keep journals of their proceedings which are to be 
considered as part of the treaty, and have the same force as if they 
weretinserted therein: the plats and journals, therefore, should be 
made with accuracy and precision, and the latitudes, longitudes, 
courses and distances, expressed in words at length as well as figures. 

It being necessary that a careful person should accompany you, to 
take charge of the stores and provisions, and issue the same, and to 
receive and disburse the money for wages and supplies, Charles An- 
derson, of Philadelphia, for his known integrity and capacity, is 
designated to perform those services, under your direction. 

You will embrace every convenient opportunity to inform the De- 
partment of State of your progress in this business, which it is ex- 
pected you will conduct with diligence and economy. These views 
will be promoted by your maintaining harmony and good under- 
standing with the Commissioner and agents on the part of Spain. 

By the certificate annexed to the copy of the second and third ar- 
ticles of the treaty, you will see that the ratifications of the treaty 
were exclianged on the 25th of April last: and consequently that you 
ought to be at the Natchez before the 25th of October next, ensuing, 
agreeably to the stipulation in the third article. 

TIMOTHY PICKEEING, 

Secretary of State. 



Cumberland Island, March 22, 1800. 

Sir : Your letter of the 30th of January last, came to hand on the 
13th of this month, and is the first I have received from you since I 
left New Orleans. 

I retired to this place immediately after descending the St. Mary's, 
for the purpose of completing our repoi-t. which will probably be 
finished the week after next, with all the plans, charts, &c. The re- 
port will be very lengthy, and contain a great number of astronom- 



[Doc. No. 43.] 63 

ical observations and intricate calculations, in no part of which have 
I any assistance, except in copying. I am extremely anxious to have 
the report signed ; for my want of faith is so great in all the officers 
of his Catholic Majesty, that I^ suppose nothing done till it is fin- 
ished. 

The Spanish party propose returning by Philadelphia and Pitts- 
burg. What their views are I know not. Mr. Power has been so 
long in the habit of intrigue and duplicity, that he is only at home 
when in the midst of confusion. His former residence in Philadel- 
phia procuring him an extensive acquaintance with the partisans of 
France ; and though he has been appointed Surveyor on behalf of his 
Catholic Majesty, he never attended to the business but one week: 
his employment has been very different, but fortunately without 
much effect. The boundary has actually been executed by the United 
States, and would have been done at a much less expense, had no 
other power been concerned in it. From a suspicion, which I think 
was well-founded. I was at all times able to complete the work without 
the aid of the other party ; and had it not been for the numbers and 
firmness of my people, at the mouth of Flint river; my journal (and 
there is no other) with all my documents, and public and private 
correspondence, with the whole apparatus, would certainly have 
fallen into the hands of the Indians. The other party had previ- 
ously divested themselves of every article of value which would im- 
pede their flight, and remained without force or apparatus, except 
an old surveying compass, which for some time had a wooden sight. 
Infinite address has been practised with my young men, and the com- 
manding officer of my escort, to make them troublesome; but a re- 
membrance of the decided measures I had taken on a former occa- 
sion has kept them within bounds. 

This expedition has taught me a useful lesson. I was always 
pleased with our Government: I now think it perfect. I can now 
see the difference between a Government whose basis is the people, 
and one supported b}^ intrigues, duplicity, and parade. In the for- 
mer, man feels his dignity ; he is open, candid, and honest : but in the 
latter, he becomes a jealous assassin. When I look back and see the 
difficulties with which we were surrounded, and the dangers by which 
we were menaced, I feel conscious that our success has been owing to 
good fortune. The report which was handed in by Mr. Gillespie and 
the Spanish Deputy Surveyor, that " the St. Mary's did not head in 
the Okefenoke swamp." is incorrect. I was one who traced it up to 
the junction, and slept two nights on the margin of the swamp. The 
trip was a disagreeable one, and I yet feel the effects of it. 

The United States extend further south than we had any idea of. 
The most southern bend of the St. Mary's is in latitude 30° 21' N. 
nearly, and the source of the river in about 30° 34' X. 

In all probability I shall be in Philadelphia about the last of next 
month. 

I am. sir, with esteem, vour sincere friend. 

ANDREW ELLICOTT. 

The Hon. the Secretary of State, 

for the United States. 



64 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Resolvtions and Documerds relating to the Boundary Line between 
the State of Georgia and the Territory of Flonda. 

Executrt: Office, Tallahassee, 

January 7th, 1828. 
Sir : In compliance with a resolution of the Legislative Council, I 
herewith transmit to you the report of " the Select Committee to 
whom was referred so much of the message of the Acting Governor 
as relates to the contested question of boundary between the State of 
Georgia and the Territory of Florida," and ask. in the language of 
that resolution, your " immediate attention to the same." 
I am, sir, very respectfully, 
Your obedient servant, 

A\TVI. M. McCAPvTY, 
Acting Governor of Florida. 
Hon. Jos. M. White, Washington City. 

The Select Committee, to lohom was referred so much of the message 
of the Acting Governor as relates to the contested' question of bound- 
ary between the State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida, beg 
leave to report: 

That the great importance and delicacy of the question has induced 
them to give to it the highest consideration, and to bring into bearing 
all the points which, in their estimation, were essential to a true state- 
ment of the causes of difference existing between the two Govern- 
ments. Looking with anxious eyes to the prosperity of the Territory, 
and to the future stand she seemed destined to take as a member of 
this great political family, they have witnessed, with pain, an attempt 
to deprive her of a most valuable portion of her population and her 
soil: and in so doing, at once to prostrate the fairest hopes of her 
most ardent admirers, and continue her in her present territorial con- 
dition. Forming the extreme southern link in the chain of the Amer- 
ican States, and possessing all the advantages which must neces- 
sarily floAv from her commercial position, superadded to the richness 
and fertility of her soil, the genial influence of her climate, and the 
hardy and adventurous character of her citizens, they looked with 
aching hearts, even to the remotest probability of an event so inuni- 
nenth' calculated to undo all former efforts in her cause, and place 
her in a situation to remove all inducements to future exertions. 
Rapidly assuming a station which has scarcely been the fortunate 
lot of any one of the Territories of the Union, Avhile yet in her in- 
fancy, she bid fair to ripen into maturity, adorned with every feature 
calculated to render her an ornament to the Union, and one of the 
most valuable members of the body politic. Though these reflections 
weighed upon the minds of your committee, and had their operating 
influence, yet the true state of the question has not been abandoned 
from such' considerations. On the contrary, they were the more im- 
pelled to exertion, in order to show the invalidity of the claim ad- 
vanced bv the State of Georgia. In this they believe they shall suc- 
ceed; and, that the matter may be fully understood, they present, in 
a form as distinct and lucid as their circumstances admit, every thing 
having a direct relation thereto. 



[Doc. Xo. 43.] 65 

The first intimation of the claim of the State of Georgia to a por- 
tion of the lands heretofore acknowledged as the soil of the United 
States, and sold as such to private individuals, is found in the mes- 
sage of his Excellency George M. Troup, late Governor of that State, 
to the Legislature, just before his retirement from office. This, to us, 
most extraordinary claim, is. according to the language of his Excel- 
lency, founded upon " the charter of Georgia, the treaty of peace of 
1783, the confederation of 1778, the present constitution, the treaty 
with Spain of 1795, and the constitution of the State of Georgia." 
While the members of j^our committee would not allow themselves 
to treat with disrespect arguments emanating from so respectable a 
source, yet, so far as the authorities cited are intended to bear upon 
the question now under consideration, they must be permitted to 
express an opinion, that a solitary glance at them will be sufficient to 
show that they afford not a shadow of evidence to support the claim — 
a claim urgecl by Georgia, at this late period, to more than two thou- 
sand square miles of the lands sold as those of the United States. 

Though your committee cannot recognize, as authority, any instru- 
ment which was created specially for the benefit of one party, with- 
out the concurrence and sanction of others interested in the soil, and 
having rights equally to be regarded in the establishment of the true 
boundary line, still in order to investigate the whole matter in dis- 
pute, they will proceed to notice the points presented by his Excel- 
lency the Governor of Georgia. 

The charter of Georgia, referred to by his Excellency, is of date 
1732, and was [granted] by a proclamation from George the 2d of 
England. By that instrument, the southern boundary of Georgia 
only extended so far as *' the southern stream of a certain other great 
water, or river, called the Alatamaha." This authority, in itself, 
is therefore entirely irrelevant, and has no bearing upon the pomt. 
But, by a proclamation of George the 3d of England, of date 1762, 
there was annexed to Georgia " all the lands lying between the rivers 
Alatamaha and St. Mary's." Accepting this last proclamation, or 
charter, as authority, your committee might inquire if. by it, Georgia 
can claim any line "^farther south than the St. Mary's river? If the 
proclamation had even stated the head of that river, it could not, for 
a moment, be contended that she could have extended her southern 
line from the head to one of its lateral branches, which might, in its 
devious course, and in conjunction with other streams, have gone 
much farther south than the actual head of the St. Mary's river, 
when, in truth, that river is mj\.de the most southern boundary of 
Georgia. 

The treaty of peace of 1783 is also considered by Governor Troup 
as giving to Georgia the right of her present claim. This definite 
treaty between the United States and Great Britain, in describing 
the boundaries of the American territories, describes the most south- 
ern as a line from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers, 
straight " to the head of the St. Mary's river." The question here 
turns upon, what is the head of St. Mary's river? and, in the solution, 
we can only be governed by common usage. The St. Mary's river has 
hereto fore been represented as beginning at or near a certain point 
designated by an artificial land mark, called Elliott's Mound. Ke- 
cently, however, another branch or stream has been found emptying 
into it from a much more southern direction, and the lat€ Governor 



63 [Doc. No. 43.] 

of Georgia now claims that branch as its head, having discovered 
that it enlarges the territory of that State beyond what has hereto- 
fore been considered as her actual limits. To show that this claim 
ought not to l)e regarded at this late day, notwithstanding the ap- 
parent plausibility Avith which it is urged, let us for a moment sup- 
pose a case, which, though not known to exist, yet may, and possibly 
does, exist. In low and flat lands, such as are known to surround 
the head of the St. Clary's river, ponds and lakes are frequently 
found connected with each other by streams which are large or small, 
as the ponds which give rise to them are swollen or depressed by rains 
or droughts. Suppose this southern branch to be formed by a com- 
bination of these streams, as it most probably is. and to be extended 
by a chain of lakes and ponds across the peninsula to the Gulf of 
Mexico, would the State of Georgia contend that the line should be 
run from thence? and, if she did. would that claim be recognized? 
Surely not : for the obvious reason, that a branch so formed could 
not be considered as the source of the St. Mary's river. When we 
speak of the head of a river, we technically mean its source, and not 
one of its branches, no matter how long. The branch of a river is. 
properly speaking, a descendant of the main river, not the source: 
it is the otfspring that inherits from the source. If the construction 
contended for by Governor Troup be correct, we should no longer 
look upon the Missouri as a branch of the Mississippi, but should 
henceforth consider it as the Mississippi itself. 

'' The confederation of 1778." cited in the message of the Go\ernor 
of Georgia, makes not the slightest allusion to the limits of that 
State, nor does " the present constitution," by which is meant the Con- 
stitution of the United States, allude to it. The reasons which in- 
duced his Excellency to refer to these two instruments are not dis- 
covered by your committee, unless he intended to deduce therefrom 
an argument that the rights of Georgia were secured to her at the 
time she became a member of the common family: if this be the 
arginnent. your committee are by no means disposed to deny its 
correctness: but. while they readily concede that the rights of Geor- 
gia should be protected, they must contend that the rights of others 
should be regarded as equally sacred. 

After an examination into all the authorities referred to by his 
Excellency of Georgia, your committee have been able to find noth- 
ing in any of them which comes directly to the point in question, 
except in the second and third articles of "the treaty with Spain 
of 1795," This was '* a treaty of friendship, limits, and navigation." 
between the United States and the Spanish Government; and the 
boundary line between Florida, then a part of the territory of Spain, 
and the State of Georgia, one of the United States, is therein de- 
scribed as a line drawn from the junctiftn of the Flint and Chalta- 
hoochie " straight to the head of the St. Mary's river,'' emi)loying 
the same language that was used in the treaty of peace of 1783. 

To prevent any future misunderstanding as to the true head of 
the St. Mary's, aiid to ascertain it. and definitively settle the line of 
demarcation, it is provided in the third article oi that treaty, that, 
" in order to carry the preceding article into effect, one Commissioner 
and one Surveyor shall be api)ointed by each of the contracting 
parties, who shall meet at Xatchez. on the left side of the river Mis- 
sissippi, before the expiration of six months from the ratification 



[Doc. No. 43.] 67 

of this convention; and they shall proceed to run and mark this 
boundary, according to the stipulations of the said article. They 
shall make plats and keep journals of their proceedings, which shall 
be considered as part of this convention, and shall have the same 
force as if they were inserted therein." The Comissioners were 
appointed, in pursuance of this treaty, to run the line: and the one 
on the part of the United States published his journal at large, in 
the year 1803. This journal, therefore, has the same effect as if it 
were part of the convention, and ''inserted therein;" and, by it. the 
head or source of the St. Mary's river is ascertained to be near the 
point called Ellicotfs Mound. Here, then, was a compact, solemnly 
made and entered into, and as solemnly ratified by the Senate of the 
United States, in which body Georgia was represented, and of which 
her Senators composed a part. Will it, then, be believed that Georgia 
can. in law, (viewing her as one of the parties to this compact,) suc- 
cessfully assert a claim to the lands further south than the point 
agreed upon b}' the Commissioners appointed under this treaty? 
Suppose that the Crown of Spain had continued in possession of 
Florida, Avould the Government of the United States have permitted 
that possession to be disturbed by such a claim as is here presented, 
in violation of the faith she plighted in making this compact, and of 
the sacred obligations which it imposes? To this, your committee be- 
lieve, that there can be but one answer ; and if the line between Florida 
and iGeorgia could not have been changed had Florida continued a 
Spanish province, the same reason must operate to prevent the change 
under her present circumstances. Previous to the treaty of 1705, 
a question of boundary would have been a legitimate subject of in- 
vestigation: but, after a solemn determination of it by treaty, it is, 
and must be. at rest. A treaty is the paramount law, and can never 
be violated, without a departure from those principles which Gov- 
ernments should ever cherish and observe in their intercourse with 
each other. 

There is another point of view in which this question may be pre- 
sented, and which, in the estimation of your committee, must put it 
at rest. 

Thirty-three years ago the State of Georgia looked quietly on, 
when, according to the estimation t)f Govenor Troup, two thousand 
square miles of her territory, by a solemn act, w^ere given to a foreign 
Power, and she was silent : at the same time her Senators in Con- 
gress, instead of interposing her claim, consented to the transfer, and 
ratified the act. Her Representatives, ever on the alert, and ready 
to sound the alarm at the slightest approach towards an invasion 
of her soil and her limits, on this occasion, not only neglected to assert 
her rights, but. confirmed the contract, so far as Georgia could do it. 
by voting for the necessary appropriations to cany this treaty into 
effect. Upon a more recent occasion, under similar circumstances, 
Georgia has pursued the same course: by the treaty of 1819. the Gov- 
ernment of Spain sold to the Government of the United States the Ter- 
ritory of Florida, embracing the land now the subject of controversy, 
and Georgia still remained silent : her Senators joined in the ratifica- 
tion of the treaty, and still interposed no claim: her Representa- 
tives voted away the money of the United States to carry this treaty 
into effect, and -still asserted none of the violated rights of Georgia; 
and vet we are told this claim has its foundation in her charter 1 



68 [Doc. No. 43.] 

The only remaining document referred to by his Excellency is 
" the Constitution of Georgia.'' Could this instrument, in the esti- 
mation of your committee be regarded as evidence in the settlement of 
this controversy, it would produce no change in its character, be- 
cause it employs the identical expressions used in the treaty of peace 
of 1783. and the treaty with Spain of 1795. to wit: " the head of the 
St. Mary's river." Your committee would however remark that his 
Excellency John Forsyth, the present Governor of Georgia, in a 
communication made by him to the Legislature of that State, since 
the' message of Governor Troup, refers as authority to an act of the 
Provincial Assembly of Georgia, of date 1765, to show that the lands 
embraced in the King's proclamation of 1763 were laid out into par- 
ishes, and that the most southern parish was declared to be bounded 
on the Florida side, by the most southern branch of the St. Mary's 
river, and by a line running due west from the head of that river. 
Did this testimony, so recently discovered by his present Excellency 
of Georgia, afford any cause for alarm, your committee believe that 
they could avoid its effects by protesting against its employment : for 
there is no position more easily sustained, in the estimation of yoar 
committee, than the one which objects to a party's making testimony, 
to be used in a controversy against his adversary; but, as your com- 
mittee believe that no injury can result from the use of ithis docu- 
ment, they will proceed to an examination of its merits. The most 
southern branch of th.e St. Mary's river is declared to be the bound- 
ary of the southern parish of Georgia : and. by adverting to the 
maps upon which that river is marked, it will be seen that it divides 
itself into two branches, not far above its mouth, and by which it 
discharges itself into the Cumberland '^ound. The southern branch 
here is unquestionably the one alluded to in the act of the Provincial 
Assembly, and to which, it is highly probable, the claims of Georgia 
will never be contested : the remaining part of that act, which men- 
tions a line running due west from the head of that river, clearly 
establishes the incorrectness of the position contended for by their 
Excellencies: and is. in this controversy, a most valuable document 
for Florida. All the authorities to which a reference has been made 
concur in naming '' the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie " 
as the point at which this line must commence, and " the head of the 
St. Mary's, river " as the one at which it must stop : it follows, there- 
fore, that, if this boundary can be ascertained by a line running due 
west from " the head of St. Mary's " it would be equally ascertained 
by a line running due east from the " junction of the Flint and Chat- 
tahoochie:" and by an examination of the map, it will be seen that 
a line running due east from the junction of those rivers would pass 
to the north of Ellicott's Mound. 

Receiving this act of the Provincial Assembly of Georgia as evi- 
dence of the true boundary of that State, your committee cannot per- 
ceive by what right she now claims the southern branch of the St. 
]\rary's as the point form which this line should be run. The south- 
ern branch is known to be many miles south of Ellicott's Mound; 
and the true line, according to the evidence adduced by Governor 
Forsyth, is to the north of that mound. Tf a line were run due 
west from the head of the southern branch of the St. Mary's, in- 
stead of intersecting the Apalachicola at the junction of the Flint 
and Chattahoochie. as it is required to do, it would be found to cross 



[Doc. No. 43.] 69 

that river at least forty miles lower down. This argument, deducted, 
as it is, from testimony furnished by Governor Forsyth, is, in 
the opinion of your committee, conclusive upon the subject. 

Your committee have thus examined all the documents upon which 
the late and present Governors of Georgia seem to rely as authority ; 
and the}'' flatter themselves, that, while they have derogated nothing 
from that State, they have given to them such construction and expla- 
nations as they are properly entitled to bear. More, much more, 
could be adduced, to show the fallacy of this claim. If taken in an 
equitable point of view, it would exhibit, in stronger colors, the 
right of the United States to hold and exercise jurisdiction over the 
soil in dispute. A treaty was formed, expressly settling this bound- 
ary : the State of Georgia acquiesced in it; and, for thirty-three 
years, she never pretended to dispute it. But, so soon as a country, 
then almost unknoAvn. uninhabited btit by the savage, became an ob- 
ject of interest, and teemed with civilization and wealth, a spurious 
claim is advanced, and earnestly contended for. Xo matter what 
may have been the rights of Georgia anterior to the treaty of 1795, 
they cannot now be asserted to any lands within the Territory of 
Florida : they are barred by her acquiescence and forbearance. Your 
committee cannot believe that an instance can be found in the his- 
tory of nations, where a treaty has been made and ratified, and after 
so great a lapse of time one of the parties has been permitted to re- 
scind it, upon the ground that injustice has been done. To shew, 
further, the entire acquiescence of the State of Georgia to the treaty 
of 1795, your committee would call the attention of the Council to 
an act of Congress, approved the -Ith May, 1826, to authorize the 
President to run and mark a line dividing the Territory of Florida 
from the State of Georgia. It will be recollected that, in conse- 
quence of the hostility of the Indian tribes, the Commissioners under 
the treaty with Spain only settled the point designating the head of 
St. Mary's river, and from which the line should be run : and it was 
to consummate the work that this act was passed. It is provided 
therein, that " the line to be run and marked shall be run straight 
from the junction of said Flint and Chattahoochie rivers to the point 
designated as the head of the St. Maryh rive?' by the Commissioners 
appointed binder the third article of the treaty of friendship, limits, 
and navigation, heticeen the United States of America and the King 
of Spain, made at St. Lorenzo el Real, on the seven-and-twentieth day 
of October. 1795. " Here it is seen that the delegation from Georgia, 
representing the right and interests of that State in both Houses of 
Congress, so late as the year 1826. sanctioned an act which recognizes, 
as the true designation of the head of " St. Marj-'s river." the point 
agreed on by the Commissioners. 

Your committee, having concluded the duty Avith which they were 
charged, cannot close their report Avithout an expression of their most 
anxious wishes that this question should be speedily and honorably ad- 
justed; and that some measures should be adopted for the further- 
ance of that desirable object. The emigration which has been rapidly 
flowing into this Territory, and much of which has settled upon the 
lands now claimed by the State of Georgia, induced a belief that we 
should soon be received as a member of the confederacy, and it was 
looked upon as the consummation of our i^olitical happiness; but the 



70 [Doc. No. 43.] 

agitation of this question may have the eflfect of retarding its prog- 
ress; and if these lands are wrested from our jurisdiction, our po- 
litical prospects are blasted forever. Florida will then present to 
disfranchised Europe the singular spectacle of a part of the American 
Republic inhumanly partitioned among her neighbors, and. instead of 
bein^ permitted to form a separate and distinct State sovereignty, 
to disseminate republican principles, and encourage its votaries in 
every portion of the globe, she was prostrated at the shrine of an 
ambitious neighbor. 

Under these views the committee recommend the adoption of the 
following resolutions : 

Resolved, That our Delegate in Congress be respectfully requested 
to urge an immediuie adjustment of the differences, and to procure, if 
possible, an order that the boundary line shall be run and marked out 
m such a direction as shall be in accordance with law, and shall pro- 
mote the ends of justice. 

Resolved, further, That his Excellency the Governor be requested 
to address a copy of the above report and resolution to the Delegate, 
and ask his immediate attention to the same. 

Unanimous^ adopted, Januarv 1. 1828. 

JN. L. DOGGETT, 
President of the Legislative Council 

A. Bellamy. Clerk. 



Copy of a letter from the Delegate from Florida to the Chairman of 
the Judiciary Committee of the Senate. 

Sir: The question submitted for the consideration of Congress, 
in relation to the boundary line between Georgia and Florida, is one 
that might have been anticipated from the documents communicated 
from the "War Department at the commencement of the session. I did 
hope, that, before the adjournment of the Legislature of Georgia, a 
different view would have been taken, and direction given, to this 
matter. It has, however, been pressed by a resolution of that body, 
and several Executive communications from the Governor of that 
State, which have at length coerced its presentation, by the President 
of the United States, to both Houses of Congress, accompanied by the 
ex-parte view taken of it by them. 

Being thus presented, it becomes a controversy of some magnitude, 
both in reference to the amount of property and the principles in- 
volved in its decision. The United States are nominally one party, 
and the State of Georgia the other. It cannot escape observation, 
however, that the Territory of Florida, the best interests and future 
hopes of which depend upon the issue, feels an immediate and vital 
concern in its decision. I contend that Georgia and the I'nited States 
are not the only parties really and substantially interested in the 
question of sovereignty. 

The treaty with vSpjiin, of •2\ti[ February. 1810. contains a j^rovision 
which was intended for the benefit of the ceded provinces; it is that 
which provides for their incorporation into the Union, as soon as 
possible, consistent with the principles of the Federal Constitution. 
I admit it is difficult to give a construction to this article, entirely 
satisfactory ; but I think the expression •' incorporation into the 



[Doc. Xo. 43.] 71 

Union " is evidenth' intended not to apply to the individual inhabit- 
ants, by giving tliem only the privileges of American citizens, but to 
the territor}^ they inhabit. Annexation to one of the States would be 
a transfer to a different sovereignty — an incorporation into that State, 
and not into the Union : such a construction would be a forced one. 
The more natural idea is. that the sovereignty renounced by Spain 
was ultimately to be placed in the hands of the people, in the same 
manner with the territories of the United States, but to remain under 
the guardianship of the General Government, until the principles of 
the Constitution would recognize their admission as a State; with all 
the rights of sovereignty now claimed by Georgia. The admission 
of Louisiana and Missouri are practical commentaries on this posi- 
tion. Florida is now a Territory, possessing some of the attributes of 
sovereignty, and is ultimately, at no distant day. to take her place in 
the confederac3^ If that period should arrive before the settlement 
of this question, she will then be the party directly interested in oppo- 
sition to the pretensions of Georgia : she will stand in the place of 
Spain, and will have a right to call on the United States to guaranty 
her limits. AA^ien Louisiana was divided into two territories, it 
formed the ground of serious remonstrance, supported b\^ strong 
reasons: it was said that Louisiana was one entire sovereignty, en- 
titled to become a member of the Union, as Louisiana : and again, 
that, if subdivision was allowable at the pleasure of Congress, their 
admission might be indefinitely postponed. This reasoning was dis- 
regarded, on the strong ground of necessity, and because the creation 
of two distinct sovereignties, instead of one, was an extension of the 
advantages stipulated by the treaty. But at this time no one enter- 
tained the absurd idea of annexing parts of Louisiana to the adjoining 
States, although it might have been very convenient to have done so. 
The preservation of their municipal laws was a most important con- 
sideration with the people of that province, and this would not have 
been accomplished if they had been annexed to one of the adjoining 
States. I consider the stipulation of the treaty a most important one, 
as intended to place the acquired provinces on a footing with the 
States which declared their independence, and possessing as much 
right to contend for their boundaries, by reference to treaties, proc- 
lamations and laws, emanating from parties competent to negotiate 
or legislate, as Georgia, or any other State in the Union. These 
provinces were not acquired with a view of obtaining subjects for any 
of the States ; and as to the United States, the genius of our Govern- 
ment forbids it, unless the ten miles square be an exception. If I am 
mistaken in this view of the subject, I shall at least be excused refer- 
ring to the position I occupy in relation to the people of Florida, and 
as a citizen of the United States, for exposing what I consider the 
groundless pretensions of Georgia to the land in question. 

This controversy involves two questions: the one of national law, 
the other of fact. It is assumed by the Executive of Georgia, that 
the line agreed upon and fixed by the Commissioners of the United 
States and Spain, in pursuance of the treaty of limits entered into at 
San Lorenzo el Real, on the 2Tth October, 1795, is not the true 
boundary intended by the charter of Georgia and the treaty of 1783; 
but that the head and source of the St. Mary's river, stipulated in 
these documents, is farther south ; Avhich will give to Georgia fifteen . 
hundred thousand acres of land, claimed by the LTnited States as a 



72 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

portion of the Spanish territory acquired by the treaty of 2"2d Feb- 
ruary, 1819; about eight hundred square miles of which has been 
sold and patented by the United States, and the money paid into the 
public treasury, with the unsuspecting confidence of the right of soil, 
at the time it was surveyed and sold. Whether this be true or not — 
which it cannot be expected will be conceded without further investi- 
gation ; since not only the commission appointed in pursuance of the 
treaty before mentioned, but a commission constituted by the State 
of Georgia herself, have pronounced, that, in their opinion, it is not 
so — there is a previous question to be determined, to wit : Does not 
the treaty of 1795, the proceedings under it, the consent of Georgia, 
as a comiDonent part of the Union, exercising an unquestionable con- 
stitutional power in the negotiation and ratification of a treaty of 
limits, the acquiescence of the State for twenty-seven years, by their 
delegation here, and their Executive there, exclude tliem from setting 
up this claim at this time? Or, does the charter of the colon}-, the 
constitution of the State, so far exempt them from the operation of 
this treaty, and their assent to it so formally given, and publicly 
expressed, as to authorize them to set aside the treaty, and proceed- 
ings under it. and now institute an inquiry as to what is the true 
source of St. Mary's river? I think Georgia cannot constitutionally 
or justly assert such a claim, and I trust it will be resisted with a be- 
coming regard for the interests of the United States and the Terri- 
tory I have the honor to represent. 

The first charter granted to Georgia was in the 5th year of George 
II. Anno Domini 1732, which embraced all that part of Carolina 
lying between the Savannah river on the north, and the Altamaha 
on the south. In the year 1763, the King, by his royal proclamation, 
made four new provinces in the country acquired in America by the 
definitive treaty of peace, concluded at Paris on the 10th February 
of that year. These provinces were Quebec. Grenada, East and 
AVest Florida. In designating the boundaries of East Florida, in- 
that proclamation, the following expression is used: ''from that 
part of the Apalachiola where the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers 
meet^ to the source of the St. Mary's river, and hy the course of the 
said Hcer. to the Atlantic Oceans In this proclamation, there is 
also a grant in these words: "TFe have, also, with the advice of our 
Privy Council aforesaid, annexed to our Province of Georgia all the 
lands lying between the nvers Atamaha and St. Mary\s.''^ It will be 
perceived from an examination of the foregoing article in the King's 
proclamation, that the land annexed by it to the Province of Georgia, 
south of the river Altamaha, did not extend beyond the source of 
that river, and that of the St. Mary's. I have not been able to dis- 
cover any grant, proclamation, or public act, by which the State of 
Georgia could set up any thing like a legitimate claim west and south 
of a line drawn from the head of the river Altamaha to that of the 
St. Mary's. It appears to me that the Government of the United 
States can, with much more propriety, annex all the land not in- 
cluded within such a line, and consequently not within the chartered 
limits of that State, to Florida, than to institute an investigation, at 
this time, to find a southern creek running into St. Mary's, for the 
boundary of that State. The commission given to Sir James 
Wright, on the 20th January 1764, if it conferred a jurisdiction be- 
yond the proclamation, could not be considered a grant of soil : the 
one is a law fixing upon certain geographical limits as the boundaries 



[Doc. No. 43.] 73 

of provinces; the other, an authority to exercise jurisdiction speci- 
fied in the grant of power. The commission of Sir James Wright 
calls for the southern stream of St. Mary's: as this is repugnant to 
the grant of soil of both the Provinces of Georgia and East Florida, 
it must be holden, like all commissions containing authority more 
extensive than the law on which they are founded, void pro tanto. 
This variance can reasonably be accounted for by a reference to the 
fact, that, in the first charter to Georgia, the most southern stream 
of the Altamaha was fixed upon as the southern limit of the colony, 
and the commission to the Governor and Captain General pursued 
the charter. The second commission, after the annexation by the 
proclamation before quoted, appears to be a copy of the first, and in 
lilce manner, calls for the most southern branch of the St. Mary's, 
wdiich does not accord with the proclamation. The Governor of 
Georgia, in a communication to the Legislature of that State, of 28th 
November last, speaks of the land annexed to Georgia by the King's 
proclamation and the commission of Sir James Wright. It will be 
percei^'ed that the latter includes more than the former, and that 
they cannot be connected together as embracing the same territorial 
extent; and if it be correct that a commission conferring powers 
more extensive than the law on which it is founded be void, the 
argument of course cannot be maintained, and the conclusion to 
which the Governor conducts us, " that a portion of the land within 
the limits of Georgia on the Florida frontier has been surveyed and 
sold b}^ the United States," is fallacious. A very obvious distinction 
might here be taken between a proclamation — which is notice to all 
the world, and has the force of law — and a commission, which gives 
jurisdiction, and is of a nature to be regulated by convenience, and 
may be limited to one, or extended to half a dozen Provinces. If, 
however, any doubt should remain, from this discrepancy, it is put 
to rest by the treaty between Great Britain and the United States, of 
3d September, 1783 : this treaty, which fixes the limits of the United 
States, at the conclusion of the Revolutionary war. directs that our 
southern boundary shall pursue a line in latitude 31° north of the 
equator, " to the middle of the river Apalachicola or Chattahoochie ; 
thence along the middle thereof, to it junction with the Flint river; 
and thence, straight to the head of St. Mary's river." So far, there- 
fore, as any argument has ben urged, founded on the charter of 
Georgia, I feel persuaded that it will be considered as having no 
force in opposition to the treaty : it was certainly competent for the 
confederacy in concluding a peace, at the termination of the war of 
Independence, to regulate the boundaries of any of the former colo- 
nies. Contemporaneously with the definitive treaty of peace be- 
tween the United States and Great Britain, was the cession of East 
and AVest Florida by Great Britain to Spain ; and the question arose 
between his Catholic Majesty and our Government, what was the 
head and source of the St. Mary's river, as defined in the charter of 
Georgia and East PTorida, and the treaty of 1783? The binding 
force of the treaty of 1783 is admitted by Governors Troup and For- 
syth, and it is referred to by them; and the treaty of 1795, between 
Spain and the United States, follows it almost literally in the de- 
scription of the boundaries between the two countries; but these 
boundaries, excepting where determined by natural objects, required 
ascertainment by actual survey and demarcation : it was necessary 



74 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

to ascertain the 31st degree of latitude by astronomical observation, 
and afterwards to trace the line by actual survey : to accomplish 
this, was inserted the 3d article of the treaty of 1795. Can it be 
denied that it was competent to the United States to enter into stipu- 
lations Avith Spain, to carry into effect the treaty of 1783? And 
does the treaty of 1795 profess to do any thing more i There is no 
cession of territory; the sole and exclusive object of the treaty 
limits was to carr}' the former treaty into, effect: what then has the 
Constitution of Georgia to do with the question? By relation, the 
act ascertaining the limits according to the principles adopted in the 
treaty of 1783. became a part of that treaty. In order to preclude 
further dispute, and terminate discussion, it Avas stipulated that the 
plats and journals of the Commissioners should form a part of the 
treaty of limits: the line thus practically ascertained is to be con- 
sidered as if expressed in that treaty. AVithout pursuing this course, 
the treaty of 1783. as regards the limits between Spain and the 
United States, would have been a dead letter, or at least useless for 
any practical purjDOse : both treaties speak of the junction of the 
Flint and Chattahoochie as one point, and the head of the St. Mary's 
as the other, at which the line Avas to begin and terminate : the first 
required no other ascertainment than that of the treaty of 1783; the 
second required the exercise of judgment and research : there could 
be no difference of opinion as to the first, but it Avas not the case as 
to the last. T^ike all other ri\-ers. the St. ^Mary's has many heads, 
and different opinions might exist as to that most deserving of the 
name. It Avas, therefore necessary to settle the matter by couA'cntion 
and agreement; and, if this Avere done fairly, and without fraud it 
should be, and is. as binding on the parties as if it were inserted in 
the treaty of 1783. No unfairness is alleged: the interest of the 
United States prompted their Commissioner to obtain the most ad- 
vantageous adjustment; and he did not yield in intelligence to that 
of Spain. The United States had. at this time, no adA-erse interest 
to that of Georgia : on the contrary, it Avas their interest to obtain 
for that State as much as they could. If the interest of Georgia had 
been compromitted by the fraud of tlie Commissioner of the United 
States, I do not say there Avould be no ground for a claim of indem- 
nity for the injury sustained. But suppose Spain had continued in 
possession of Florida, and this question had arisen between her and 
Georgia — the parties would be placed in a singular attitude. Spain 
Avould have had just reason to complain, unless guarantied by the 
United States, in what had solemnly been settled and assured to her. 
The matter, after haA^ng been determined by the proper parties, the 
only parties competent to determine it. acquiesced in for tAventy- 
seven years, during Avhich time an examination has been made b}* a 
commission constituted by the State of Georgia, and a report made, 
that this was the head of the riA-er. Upon what principle can this 
matter be opened, or rather considered as neA-er having been settled? 
I think it ought to be considered res adjudicate., and the maxim 
" intent Reipiihlica? ut finis Utium '' applied — a maxim more im- 
portant in the disputes of nations than to the controA'ersy of indi- 
viduals. Suppose Spain had attempted to extend her jurisdiction 
beyond Ellicott's Mound, should Ave have not appealed to the ascer- 
tainment and decision in pursuance of the treaty of 1795? And 
would not Georgia haA-e justly complained of the bad faith of Spain, 



[Doc. No. 43.] 75 

and called down upon her the curse of Scripture, for attempting to 
remove her neighbor's landmarks? 

fFiistice does not vary with the change of parties. If such preten- 
sit)n would lune been unjust on the part of Spain, it would be equally 
so on the part of the United States, or of Georgia. The necessity of 
adhering to treatie;^. when entered into, has been fully and ably urged 
by Go^■ernor Troup on another occasion. If the question would be 
considered as settled between Spain and the United States, I can see 
no reason wh}^ the subsequent acquisition of Florida should give rise 
to it again: and if there be any force in the argument that Georgia 
and the United States are the only parties, as the Delegate of Flor- 
ida. I solemnly protest against any alteration of the boundaries, with- 
out the consent of my constituents. 

[f there is any grant of authority in the Constitution, unquestion- 
able in its nature, and I had almost said unlimited in its extent, it is 
the treaty-nuiking power given to the General Government. The 
safety of the States was amply provided for, by requiring the ratifi- 
cation of the Senate, their immediate representatives. It cannot be 
expected that such a body Avould ever advise or consent to any con- 
vention that would injure themselves or tl\eir States. An encroach- 
jnent. in one instance, would only be a precedent for its repetition in 
another: and the first blow would strike a nerve which would agitate 
the body i^olitie in all its parts. The United States did not profess 
to cede any jjortion of Georgia, but to have its limits ascertained. 
I'he State of Georgia is pi'ohibited. by the Constitution from forming 
any compact, convention, or alliance, or entering into any negotiation 
W'ith a foreign power, on the subject of boundary, or any other sub- 
ject whatever. She can negotiate only through the Government of 
the United States; and any act constitutionally performed by that 
Government, in which her interests are atfected. she is bound by, as 
much as if executed by herself. This is the only organ through 
which her complaints can be heard, and her rights protected, in con- 
troversies with other nations. The assent of the State was given to 
the treaty of 1705. which was entered into by her duly constituted 
agent, the Government of the United States, on a subject matter 
within their legitimate jurisdiction; and, by that, Georgia is con- 
stitutionally and morally bound — nuin ille qui facit per alium facit 
per se. It would be in vain that powers were given and treaties 
made, if one individual state had the right of resisting the solemn 
conventions of the General Government, their own Representatives a 
component part, without any respect to their having been executed 
according to all the forms of the Constitution, or to limitations as to 
time. 

The assent of Georgia was not only given to the treaty of 1795, but 
njion a recent occasion, in the enactment of a law, in the execution of 
which this difficulty occurred, it was still more clearly and unequivo- 
cally expressed. That law was introduced by a part of the Georgia 
delegation, at the instance of the Executive of that State. This act, 
as introduced by them, and in tlie form in which it passed, did not 
provide for ascertaining the limits between the State and Territory; 
but authorized the T^resident of the United States, in conjunction 
with the constituted authorities of Georgia, " to cause the line to 
be run and distinctly marked," and *' the line so to be run and 
marked shall be straight from the junction of the Chattahoochie and 

43(H!4— S. Dot-. 407, 60-1 S 



76 ' [Doc. No. 43.] 

Flint, to the point designated as the head of St. Mary's river, by the 
conunissioners appointed under the third article of the treaty of 
1795." 

It never occurred to that highly respectable delegation that it was 
competent for the United States to do any thing more than to exe- 
cute the unfinished work of running and marking the line between 
the two points agreed upon by the two Governments of Spain and 
the United States ; and it appears never to have occurred to the Exec- 
utive of Georgia, until the work was nearly completed. The bill, as 
it was introduced by them, was objected to by me, on the ground that 
it should only provide for running to the head of St. Clary's. It did 
not occur to me that the journals and proceedings of the commis- 
sioners were to be a part of the treaty itself. Of this, however, I 
was soon informed by Governor Forsyth, who referred to that article 
of the treaty, and convinced not only myself, but the committee, that 
the question having been settled by the two nations, it could not now 
be disturbed. My opposition to the bill, as it came from the Senate, 
was induced by having learnt that there was a northern branch of the 
St. Mary's, of greater extent than the one selected by Ellicott and the 
Spanish commissioner, which; if ascertained to be the head of the 
river, would give to Florida as much land above the line as is now 
claimed by Georgia below it. I was convinced, however, by the argu- 
ments of Governor Forsyth, (and few men have greater powers to 
convince than that gentleman, on all questions requiring learning 
and talent,) that, however just our claim, it was one that could not 
be asserted, in consequence of its having been definitely settled by 
this treaty, which I now plead in bar of further proceeding. The 
discovery of a southern branch of the St. Mary's has altered the case, 
but does not alter, in my judgment, the principle on which it should 
be decided. When this bill came up for consideration, no objection 
was made to it by the delegation from Georgia, in either House. If 
they supposed that the question was yet open for discussion, why was 
the bill permitted to pass confining the operation to the two points 
agreed upon ? 1 do not know that any limitation has been prescribed 
to nations or sovereignties, but it does appear to me that Georgia, 
after all these proceedings, ought not to claim an exemption from 
their operation, or to avail herself of the common law maxim, " nul- 
lum tempus occurrit Regi." As I contend that no further legislation 
is necessary on this subject, I will only refer to a few facts to show the 
intrinsic difficulties of any further proceedings. 

The commissioner of the United States, a gentleman of practical 
science and great erudition, who is alike distinguished for his activ- 
ity, personal industrj'^, and intellectual refinement, declares that the 
source of the St. Mary's is not only indeterminate, but indeterminable 
by any geographical or physical process whatever. I take the liberty 
to annex two extracts from the letters of that gentleman to me, which 
place the subject in such a clear light, and are expressed in so much 
better language than I can employ, that no remark of mine is neces- 
sary on the points to which they relate. 

Upon most occasions, there is little difficulty in finding the head of 
a river. The longest branch from its disemboguement, or the one 
which discharges the most water, is not always the head of the river. 
Names are arbitrary. The Escambia river, which discharges itself 
into the head of Pensacola Bay, has two branches, arising within 



[Doc. No. 43.] 77 

one hundred miles of its mouth; whilst that of the Conecuh, which 
also runs into it, is almost twice as Ions;, discharges the most water, 
and yet is certainly not the head of the Escambia, which has been 
known by that name more than half a century. This southern branch 
of St. INIary's, which has lately been discovered, and sought to be 
made the boundary of Georgia, has been known, from time immemo- 
rial, by a different name, and was no more thought of as the river 
known by the name of St. Mary's, than the Conecuh is now of the 
Escambia. It may discharge ten times the quantity of water, and 
yet not be the head of St. Mary's, as known at the time the charter 
was granted to Georgia, or when the treaties of 1783 and 1795 were 
made. The northern and what is now called the middle branch, near 
which the mound of Ellicott is erected, were then considered the only 
branches of what is properly called the St. Mary's ; and the general 
idea which prevailed at the time, was, that Ellicott, the American 
commissioner, had obtained the advantage of the Spanish, in fixing 
the mound near what was, before this new discovery and new name, 
the southern branch of the St. Mary's. If the commission of Sir 
James Wright, referred to by Governor Forsyth, was not copied by 
mistake, from the first calling for the southern branch of Altamaha, 
this middle one was evidently intended. The provincial authorities, 
in the regulation of their parish, so considered it : the Board of Trade 
and Plantations, in England, so thought ; and the commissioners of 
Georgia, appointed under the authority of the State, so reported. 
It is known that, at the time the examination was made by the sur- 
veyor of Georgia, it was a season of unparalleled drought, and, at 
another time, he might have made the same investigation, when all 
the waters of that vast reservoir composing, and in the vicinity of 
the Okefenoke Swamp, discharging themselves through this middle 
channel, would have furnished more water in a month than the South 
Creek did in a year. In a country remarkable for its calcareous com- 
binations, new springs may break out, and branches be formed, which 
did not exist half a century ago. 

I have heard it suggested that Ellicott's report was not to be found 
in the Department of State : it will be observed that the treaty speaks 
of " the ioiirnal^'' of which we have a copy in the Library of Con- 
gress; and this objection cannot be urged by Georgia, because it was 
stated to Col. Randolph, the commissioner of the United States, at 
Milledgeville, by the Executive, that the journal was considered au- 
thentic there, and would be acted upon as such. This journal was 
composed after the report was made; and, as a matter of history, 
would be considered conclusive, even if it were not made a part of 
the treaty ; after this lapse of time, it would hardly be expected, that, 
in relation to a fact of such notoriety, it would be required to sup- 
port it with such technical evidence as a certified copy from Spain, 
l3ecause by accident or negligence, it has been lost. We might as well 
demand from Georgia a certified copy of her charter from England 
at this day. If any evidence of its authenticity were demanded, or 
corroboration of the general history of the country, it will be found 
in the ostensibility of the mounds, and the objects and marks de- 
scribed. 

In conclusion, I solemnly believe that the United States have a 
much stronger claim to all the land above what has been called the 
Florida boundary west of a line from the sources of the Altamaha 



78 [Doc. No. 43.] 

and St. Mary's, to the limit of the first charter, before the annexation 
by the King's proclamation, than Georgia has to the land now in 
contest, south of Ellicott's line; and. if that were added to Florida, 
we should be a state next year — " a consummation most devoutly to 
be wished." 

I have the honor to be, 

With high considerations. 

Your most obedient servant. 

JOS. M. WHITE. 



Extracts of letters from Thomas M. Randolph. Esq., United States. 
Cormnissioner, to Jos. M. White, Delegate from Flonda. 

Decetiiber 23, 1827. 
Dear Sir: I not only concur fully in opinion with you upon the 
question of the Georgia claim, but I really think, with gravity, that 
Georgia might have as reasonably set up a claim, when Louisiana was 
acquired, to the exterior of her territory as far as the Anglo-Ameri- 
can Andes, because it reached the Mississippi before. '* All the lands 
lying between the rivers Alatamaha and St. Mary's," to take 50 miles 
wide over St. Mary's, is as unreasonable, in my opinion, as the former 
would have been. The head of St. Mary's was known as soon as 
there was a settlement at its mouth: for the Indians of Old Mico 
and the Micasucky towns went there to trade very soon after, and 
were soon followed by great numbers of those residing on the waters 
running into the gulf; all of whom turned out where Suwanee runs 
out of it, and crossed St. Mary's about three miles below Ellicott's 
Mound, at what is called the Pine Log Crossing Place to this day, 
because a y&ry tall tree would reach across that place. They were 
always said to have come by the head of St. Mary's; and that trail 
is acknowledged to be very ancient. The reconnoitering party sent 
by Ellicott and ISIinor. although they passed the mouth of what is 
called, to this d-^y, the South Prong, b}- the people residing near, 
went directly up the St. Mary's river to look for its head. They 
had no thought of any other St. Mary's. The Privy Council in 
England had no more thought of any other than they had: for it 
runs parallel, mainly, with the Altamaha. while the South Prong is at 
light angles to that river, and would have been an indefinite bound- 
a^}^ The Provincial Assembly of Georgia could not have contem- 
plated any other in March, 1765: for they bound their parish by a 
due west line from the head of the most southern branch they knew 
of. Now. from what has been hitherto considered the head, a line, 
according to Ellicott's calculation, from the north towards the west 
of 89° 17' 22", would strike the junction of Flint and Chattahoochie : 
of course N. 90° W., or due west, would strike lower down the Apa- 
lachicola, being more to the left hand in going: how much lower 
still must a parallel Ime, or another due west course, startmg 50 
miles further south, come in contact with that river? The Provincial 
Assembly could not have made such a mistake; I am persuaded 
they did not make it. Spanish creek, at the mouth of which was 
the Indian trading establishment, called Trader's Hill, was the north 
branch to them, and the St. Marv's itself the south branch. It 



[Doc. No. 43.] 79 

would be as reasonable to insist on the head of the Missouri now, in 
constructing- a document of old date calling for the source of the 
Mississippi, as to shift the name of St. Marj^'s where it never was 
before. To those at all acquainted with the theory of rivers, it is 
well known hoAv illusory the test applied by Mr. McBride is, where 
they have expansions even sufficient to cause the stagnation, for a 
time, of most part of their waters, much more where their origin i> 
a great reservoir. But in the supposition that Mr. McBride has 
determined the section of the channel accurately, and has made a 
correction for the superior velocity of the middle of the stream on 
the surface, the basin of the St. Mary's, of one hundred times greater 
area, perhaps being flat and shallow, while the other is deep, might 
have afforded less water at that time, and yet, at another, might 
yield as much in one week as the south prong in half a year ; and even 
if the latter did furnish most, which I am very sure is impossible for 
the whole year, it would be as unreasonable to call the centre of its 
lake the head of the St. Mary's, as for the Scots of Glasgow to look 
for the head of the Clyde in the middle of Loch Lomond ; the outlet of 
which pours into Clyde, perpetually, more, by many times, than all 
its waters : for Loch Lomond has a manifold greater space to supply 
its waters than the Clyde, and the ratio is both inverse and infinitely 
greater in the American case." 



December 26, 1827. 

" Dear Sir : In the hasty letter I had the honor to address you 
lately, I stated, what I believe you will readily establish upon investi- 
gation as an historical fact, that the stream called the St. Mary's 
by Ellicott had been known by that name, at its head, for a great 
length of time before, in consequence of the Indian trading path to 
St. JNIary's, and afterwards to Colerain and Trader's hill, having 
always crossed it there. 

" The commissioners of the United States and Spain, in February, 
1800, had never heard the name applied to any other: for Ellicott 
does not speak of such a question having arisen between him and 
Minor. The outlet of the main lake, unobserved by them, has not 
even been indicated in their map : so far were they from the idea 
that the name of St. Mary's was susceptible of being shifted over 
to one of these lateral branches. 

" T will take the liberty now to communicate another fact, of a 
different nature, coming under the chorographic head of the subject. 
Within four miles of the lake which gives rise to the south prong, 
another lake has been found, of somewhat larger surface, but afford- 
ing less water, out of which flows what it called the west prong. 
Ellicott appears to have heard of this, but, quitting the river at his 
observation mound, to run his traverse line to the beacon mound, 
he has not laid it down further than to locate its mouth. Imme- 
diately to the east of the south prong there is another branch of 
the river, very much of the same description with the Alligator 
swamp, which joins the St. Mary's about two miles below the beacon 
mound; but the former was reported to me, by hunters, to be half 
a mile wide, whilst the latter, w^hich I explored fully myself, is not 
much over 1(^0 yards at any place where it is two feet deep. These 



80 [Doc. No. 43.] 

two cannot be called streams. haA'ing never yet had current enoagh 
to scoop out a channel for themselves. The Alligator was not deeper 
than three feet just above its mouth, when St. Mary's was nine feet 
deep measured with a pole by myself, immediately above the junction. 
There is barely a percejDtible floAv in it, and, moreover there was no 
where any clear space of water to be found belonging to it, after 
several days" reconnoiterin^, crossing and recrossing, on horseback, 
whenever the soundness of its bottom would allow of riding: for the 
depth of water was no hindrance any where. This must, in 1765, 
have been considered as one of the outlets of Okefenoke. into St. 
Mary's; for it is, in a manner, blended with the little Okefenoke 
which feeds the St. Mary's at its bend, about six miles from the 
mouth, where it comes from the southward, and turns to the east. 
Again, that branch of Suwanee called Santafee, was reported by 
the hunters of the countrj'^ to head very close to the lake out of which 
runs the south prong. We have, then, a chorographic fact, that 
the space on the surface of the earth which furnishes rain water 
to supply that lake, out of which the south prong flows, is very 
narrow indeed, absolutely limited on one side to two miles, and very 
little more on any other; while the true St. Mary's has a region of 
many hundred square miles, from Satilla to SuAvanee. tributar}" to 
its head only; and its inundations are great, as Elicott testifies, 
although by no means in proportion to such a space. A botanical fact 
explains that anomaly. All the marshes which supj^ly the true St. 
Mary's produce, in great quantity, those "herbal ramosae palustes" of 
the sphagnum genus, which form peat bogs in Scotland and Ireland. 
The growth is sixfold more luxuriant here than there in height; jet 
they do not show any thing like the same accumulation of debris as 
in the case of the peat moss. Those j^lants furnish a substance in- 
soluble in water, as is well known. The plain of the St. Mary's has 
been gradually elevated by that vegetable production ; its swamps are 
now more extensive than the}'^ once were ; and the loss of water it sus- 
tains by evaporation is manifold greater than formerly, in conse- 
quence of the manifest encroachment of the sphagnose marshes upon 
the dry palmetto flats. Whoever reconnoitres on horseback, dili- 
gently, will acknowledge this to be the fact, not theory. But it is 
entirely different in the lakes of that country. The "herbs submersse 
vado affixae," and the "herbae aquatiles liberse" aquis innatantes, are 
readily soluble in water: for they are little more than a watery, 
parerchymatous substance, notwithstanding all the wonders of vege- 
tation offered to the view by valemenia and stratiotes, rising to the 
surface, as in lake Jackson, in places where a ship of the line could 
float. It is quite probable that the head of St. Mary's is further 
south, from that cause, now, than it was in ITCo, when the Provincial 
Assembly thought a due west line from it would strike the mouth of 
Flint. It seems almost certain that the river receives less water in its 
channel near the beacon mound, than it once did. The question, where 
is the eastern extremity of the line, was probably much easier to settle 
then, than it is likely to be now. But the provision made in the treaty 
between Spain and the United States, of October, 1795, was known 
to Georgia. Ellicott Avas appointed before that year expired, and his 
report was not made until May or June, 1800. The General Govern- 
ment, having exclusively the foreign relations, of course made the 
arrangement with Spain, and Georgia was satisfied with the arbiter 



[Doc. No. 43.] 81 

during four years' continuance of his functions, and with the award 
for twent3^-seven years; nineteen years without any investigation on 
their j^art, and nine 3'ears after one made through the agency of three 
of their first citizens, to whose minds the idea of shifting the name 
of St. Mary's, from a stream that had always borne it to another, did 
not occur. 

"The authorities of Georgia, so far, and so lon^, too, had ratified 
the conchision made with Spain, and Florida, being completely the 
successor of Spain, it seems to me that the surveying the lands now, 
as proposed, would be, in that view, no less arbitrary and violent than 
an invasion of the Spanish territory, with the design to take posses- 
sion, would have been formerly. 

"The Government of the United States cannot surrender the ter- 
ritory of a State ; but, when the claim of a State to such territory has 
been disputed, and the dispute settled with the approbation of the 
State, must that Government be reduced to the necessity of saying to 
the foreign sovereignty, you must send an armed force yourself to 
fulfil the aAvard : we have no power to do it : it is a case in which the 
supreme law of the land cannot be put in execution b}' our author- 
ity?" 



Message from the President of the United States, transmitting docu- 
ments relative to the boundary line between Georgia and Florida. 

To the House of Representatives of the United States: 

Washington, Marrh 3<f, 1828. 
I transmit to the House of Representatives a report from the Sec- 
retary of State, with documents containing the instructions of the 
Government of the United States to Thomas Pinckney, under which 
was negotiated the treat^^ of San Lorenzo el Real, and relating to the 
boundary line between the United States and the dominions, at that 
time, of Spain, as requested by a resolution of the House of the 18th 
ultimo. 

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 



Department of State, 

Washington February 29, 1828. 

The Secretary of State, to whom has been referred a resolution of 
the House of Representatives, of the 18th instant, requesting the 
President to communicate to the House copies of the instructions of 
the Government of the United States, given to Thomas Pinckney, its 
Minister in Spain, in pursuance of which the treaty of San Lorenzo 
el Real was entered into by said Minister with the Government of 
Spain, so far as said instructions relate to the designation of the 
dividing line between the territories of Spain and the United States, 
has the honor to submit to the President the accompanying extracts: 
the first from a letter of instructions from Mr. Edmund Randolph, 
then Secretary of State, under date the 28th November, 1794, to 
Mr. Thomas Pinckney, appointed Minister Plenipotentiary to Spain ; 
and the other, from a report referred to therein which, comprehend 
the pnrticular instructions required by the resolution of the House. 

All which is respectfulllv submitted. 

H. CLAY. 



82 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Extract from instructions of Edmund Randolph, Secretary of State, 
to Tho/nas Pinckney, Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States 
at MadHd, dated NoverrHjer '2?>th, 1794. 

"Your powers inform you. in general terms, of the subjects with 
which you are charged. The development of the principles upon 
which they are to be contended for Avill be found in the documents 
of which Mr. Short is possessed. But, for the sake of enabling you 
to avail yourself of every opportunity, before you reach Madrid, I 
send a statement of our pretensions as they were laid before Con- 
gress, comprehending Mr. Jay's discussions with Mr. Gardonui. and 
the instructions and arguments transmitted to Messrs. Carmichael 
and Short. In these, the President sees no reason foi- a chanffe." 



Extract from instmctions of Mr. Jefferson, Secretary of State, to 
Messrs. Ca,rniichael and Short. Ministers Plenipotentiary to Madrid, 
dated March 18, 1792. 

" The President having thought proper to appoint you joint Com- 
missioners Pleni])otentiary on the part of the TJnited States, to treat 
with the Court of Madrid on the subjects of the navigation of the 
Mississippi, arrangements on our limits and commerce, you will, here- 
with, receive your commission ; as, also, observations on these several 
subjects reported to the President, and approved by him. Avhich will, 
therefore, serve as instructions for 3'^ou. These expressing minutely 
the sense of our Government, and what they wish to have done, it 
is unnecessary for me to do more here than desire you to pursue these 
objects unremittingly, and endeavor to bring them to an issue in the 
course of the ensuing summer." 



Extract from a report of Mr. Jeferson. Secretary of State, to the 
President of the United States, dat^d 18fh 31 arch, 1792. 

" The appointment of Mr. Carmichael and Mr. Short as comniis- 
sioners to negotiate with the Court of Spain, a treaty or convention 
relative to the navigation of the Mississippi, and which, perhaps, may 
be extended to other interests, rendering it necessary that the subjects 
to be treated of should be developed, and the conditions of arrange- 
ment explained, the Secretary of State reports to the President of the 
United States the following' observations on the subjects (if negotia- 
tion between the United States of America and the Court of Spain, 
to be communicated, by way of instructions, to the Commissioners of 
the United States, appointed as before mentioned, to manage that 
negotiation. These subjects are — 

1. Boundary. 

2. The navigation of the Mississippi. 

3. Commerce. 

I. As to boundary, that between Georgia and Florida is the only 
one which will need any explanation. Spain sets up a claim to pos- 
sessions wnthin the Statp of Goorrrin. founded on her having rescued 



[Doc. No. 43.] 88 

them by force from the British duriiio- the late war. Tlie following 
view of that subject seems to admit no reply. 

The several States now composing- the United States of America 
were, from their first establishment, separate and distinct societies, 
dependent on no other society of men whatever; they continued at the 
head of their respective Governments the Executive Magistrate who 
presided over the one they had left, and thereby secured, in effect, a 
constant amity with the nation. In this stage of their Government, 
their several boundaries were fixed: and particularly the southern 
boundary of Georgia, the only one now in question, was established 
at the 31st degree of latitude from the Apalachicola, westwardly; 
and the western boundary, originally the Pacific Ocean, was, by the 
treaty of Paris, reduced to the middle of the Mississippi. The part 
which our Chief Magistrate took, in a war w^aged against us by the 
nation among whom he resided, obliged us to discontinue him, and 
to name one within every State. In the course of this war, we were 
joined by France as an ally, and by Spain and Holland as associates, 
having a common enemy : each sought that cominon enemy wherever 
they could find him. France, on our invitation, landed a large army 
within our territories, continued it with us two years, and aided us in 
recovering sundry places from the possession of the enemy; but she 
did not pretend to keep possession of the places rescued. Spain 
entered into the remote western part of our territory, dislodged the 
common enemy from several posts they held therein, to the annoyance 
of Spain, and perhaps thought it necessary to remain in some of them, 
as the only means of preventing their return. We, in like manner, 
dislodged them from several posts in the same western territory, to 
wit : Yincennes. Cahokia, Caskaskia, &c., rescued the inhabitatnts, 
and retained constantly afterwards both them and the territorj^ under 
our possession and government. At the conclusion of the war. Great 
Britain, on the 30th of November, 1782, by treaty, acknowledged our 
independence and our boundary, to wit : the Mississippi to the west, 
and the completion of the 31st degree, &c. to the south. In her treaty 
with Spain, concluded seven weeks afterw ards, to wnt : January ^Oth, 
1783, she ceded to her the two Floridas ( wdiich had been defined in the 
proclamation of 1763) and Minorca; and, by the 8th article of the 
treaty, Spain agreed to restore^ without compensation^ all the terri- 
tories conquered by her, and not included in the treaty, either under 
the liead of cessions or restitutions, that is to say, all except Minorca 
and the Floridas. According to this stipulation, Spain was expressly 
bound to have delivered ttp the possessions she had taken within the 
limits of Georgia to Great Britain, if they were conquests on Great 
Britain, who was to deliver them over to the United States; or rather 
she should have delivered them to the United States themselves, as 
standing, quoad hoc^ in the place of Great Britain ; and she was bound, 
by natural right, to deliver them to the same United States, on a much 
stronger ground, as the real and only proprietors of those places 
which she had taken possession of, in a moment of danger, withoitt 
having had any cause of war with the United States, to whom they 
belonged, and without having declared any; but, on the contrary, 
conducting herself, in other respects, as a friend and associate. Vat- 
tel. 1. 3. 122. 

It is an established principle, that conquest gives only an inchoate 
right, which does not become perfect till confirmed by the treaty of 



84 [Doc. No. 43.] 

peace, and by a renunciation or abandonment by the former pro- 
prietor. Had Great Britain been that former proprietor, she vras so 
far from confirming to Spain the right to the territory of Georgia 
invaded by Spain, that she expressly relinquished to the United States 
any right that might remain in her. and afterwards completed that 
relinquishment, by procuring, and consolidating with it, the agree- 
ment of Spain herself to restore such territory, without compensation. 
It is still more palpable, that a Avar existing between two nations, 
as Spain and Great Britain, could give to neither the right to seize 
and appropriate the territory of a third, which is even neutral, much 
less which is an associate in the war, as the United States were with 
Spain. See, on this subject, Grotius, 1. 3. c. 6 § 26; PufFend., 1. 8. c. 
6, § 17, 23 ; Vattel, 1. 3, § 197, 198. ^ ' 

On the conclusion of the general peace, the United States lost no 
time in requiring from Spain an evacuation of their territory; that it 
has been hitherto delayed, by means which we need not explain to that 
Court, but which have been equally contrary to our right and to our 
consent. 

Should Spain pretend, as has been intimated, that there was a secret 
article of treaty between the United States and Great Britain, agree- 
ing, if, at the close of the war, the latter should retain the Florldas, 
that then the southern boundary of Georgia should be the completion 
of the 32d degree of north latitude, the Commissioners may safely 
deny all knowledge of the fact, and refuse conference on any such 
postulatum: or should they find it necessary to enter into argument 
on the subject, they will, of course, do it hypothetically, and. in that 
way, may justly say, on the part of the United States. " Suppose 
that the United States, exhausted by a bloody and expensive war 
wath Great Britain, might have been willing to have purchased peace 
by relinquishing, under a particular contingency, a small part of their 
territory, it does not follow that the same United States, recruited 
and better organized, must relinquish the same territory to Spain, 
without striking a blow. The United States, too, have irrevocably 
put it out of their power to do it by a new Constitution, which guar- 
anties every State against the invasion of its territory. A disastrous 
war. indeed, might, by necessity, supersede this stipulation, (as neces- 
sity is above all law,) and oblige them to abandon a part of a State; 
but nothing short of this can justify or obtain such an abandonment." 

The southern limits of Georgia depend chiefly on, 

1st. The charter of Carolina to the lords proprietors, in 1663, ex- 
tending southwardly to the river Matheo, now called St. John's, sup- 
posed in the charter to be in latitude 31°, and so west, in a direct line, 
as far as the South Sea. 

2d. On the proclamation of the British King, in 1763, establishing 
the boundary between Georgia and the two Floridas. to begin on the 
Mississippi, in 31° of lat. north of the equator, and running east- 
warly to the Apalachicola; thence, along the said river, to the mouth 
of the Flint : thence, in a direct line, to the source of the St. Mary's 
river, and down the same to the ocean. This proclamation will be 
found in Postlethwaj^te voce. " British America." 

3d. On the treaties between the United States and Great Britain, 
of November 30, 1782, and September 3, 1783. repeating and con- 
firming these ancient boundaries. 

There was an intermediate transaction, to wit, a convention con- 
cluded at the Pardo. in 1739. wherebv it was agreed that Ministers 



[Doc. No. 43.] 85 

Plenipotentiary should be immediately appointed by 'Spain and 
Great Britain, for settling' the limits of Florida and Carolina. The 
convention is to be found in the collections of treaties ; but the pro- 
ceedings of the Plenipotentiaries are unknown here. Qu. If it was 
on that occasion that the southern boundary of Carolina was trans- 
ferred from the latitude of Matheo, or St. John's river, further north 
to the St. Marj^'s? or was it the proclamation of 17G3, which first 
removed this boundary? [If the commissioners can procure, in 
Spain, a copy of whatever was agreed on in consequence of the con- 
vention of the Pardo, it is a desirable State paper here.] 

To this demonstration of our rights, may be added the explicit 
declaration of the Court of Spain, that she would accede to them. 
This took place in conversations and correspondence thereon between 
Mr. Jay, Minister Plenipotentiary for the United States at the Court 
of Madrid, the Marquis de Lafayette, and the Count de Florida 
Blanca. Monsieur de Lafayette, in his letter of February 19, 1783, 
to the Count de Florida Blanca, states the resul of their conversa- 
tions on limits, in these words: "with respect to limits, his Catholic 
Majesty has adopted those that are deermined by the preliminaries 
of the 30th of November, between the United States and the Court 
of London." The Count de Florida Blanca, in his answer of Febru- 
ary 22d, to INI. de Lafayette says " although it is his Majesty's inten- 
tion to abide, for the present, by the limits established by the treaty 
of the 30th of November, 1782, between the English and the Ameri- 
cans, the King intends to inform himself, particularly, whether it 
can be, in any ways, inconvenient or prejudicial, to settle that affair 
amicably with the United States." And M. de Lafayette, in his let- 
ter of the same day, to Mr. Jay, wherein he had inserted the preced- 
ing, says, " on receiving the answer of the Count Florida Blanca, (to 
wit : his answer, before mentioned, to M. de Lafayette,) I desired 
an explanation respecting the addition that relates to the limits. I 
was answered, that it was a fixed principle to abide by the limits 
established by the treaty between the English and the Americans: 
that his remark related only to mere unimportant details, which he 
wished to receive from the Spanish commandants, which would be 
amicably regulated, and would hy no means oppose the general prin- 
ciple. I asked him, before the Ambassador of France, (M. de Mont- 
morin,) whether he would give me his word of honor for it? he 
assured me he would., and that / might engage it to the United 
States."" 



Report of the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Repre- 
sentatives, to which was referred the message of the President, of 
the 22^ January., 1828, transmitting copies of communications 
from the Governor of Georgia., 7'elating to the line dividing that 
State from the Territory of Florida, — March 21, 1828, 

The correspondence between the President and the Governor of 
Georgia, thus referred to the committee, presents the question. What 
is the correct boundary between that State and the Territory of 
Florida? To enable the House to decide this question, the com- 
mittee beg leave to present to their consideration a condensed view 
of the evidence in relation to it. 



86 [Doc. No. 43.] 

The charter of Caroliiiii to the lords proprietors, in 1663, extended 
southwardly to tlie rivei- Matheo, now called St. John's, supposed 
in the charter to be in latitude 31°. and so west, in a direct line, as far 
as the South Sea. 

It appears, by an extract from the charter of Georgia, in 1732, 
that the boundaries were '" all those lands, countries, and territories, 
situate, lying, and being in that part of South Carolina, in America, 
which lies from the northern stream of a river, commonlj^ called the 
Savannah, all along the sea coast to the southward, unto the most 
southern stream of a certain other great water or river, called the 
Alatamaha. and westward from the heads of the said rivers, re- 
spectiveh'^, in a direct line, to the South Seas.'* Before the date of 
this charter to Georgia, by a second charter to Carolina, in 1667, its 
limits had been extended south and westward, as far as the degree of 
twenty-nine, inclusive, of northern latitude. The Government of 
Carolina, having been, in its origin, a proprietary one, was, in 1729, 
surrendered by seven out of eight of the proprietors, and aftervv-nrds 
by the eighth, and then became a regal one; and the province was 
divided into the two Governments of North and South Carolina. 
The order of Council making this division, and fixing the boundaries, 
is not accessible to the committee, nor is it deemed material. 

The trustees of Georgia, in 1752, surrendered the whole territory 
to the King, and the government was afterwards entirely regal. 

The King by a proclamation of the 7th October, 1763, annexed to 
the Province of Georgia all the lands lying between the rivers Alata- 
maha and St. Mary's, and by his commission to Governor Wright, of 
the 20th Januarj'', 1764, declares the boundaries to be on the north 
by the most northern stream of a river, there commonly called 
Savannah, as far as the head of said river, and fi'om thence, west- 
ward, as far as our territories extend ; on the east by the sea coast, 
from said river Savannah, to the most southern stream of a certain 
other river called St. Mary, including all islands within twenty 
leagues of the coast lying between the rivers vSavannah and St. 
Maiy, as far as the head thereof ; and from thence, westward, as far 
as our territories extend, by the north boundary line of our Prov- 
inces of East and West Florida. 

By the treaty of peace, in 1783, between the United States and 
Great Britain, the southern boundary of the United States is thus de- 
scribed : '• South by a line, to be drawn due east from the determina- 
tion of the line last mentioned, in the latitude of thirtv-(me degrees 
north of the equator, to the middle of the river Apalachicola or Chat- 
tahoochie; thence, along the middle thereof, to its jimction with the 
Flint river; thence, straight to the head of St. Mary's river; and 
thence, down along the middle of St. Mary's river, to the Atlantic 
Ocean.'* 

By the proclamation of 1763, before referred to, the King had de- 
clared that part of the northern boundar}^ of East Florida which is 
now the subject of inquiry to be as follows, viz : To the northward 
by a line drawn from that part of said river (Apalachicola) where 
the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers meet, to the source of St. Mary's, 
and, b}^ the course of the said river, to the Atlantic Ocean. Spain 
having obtained from Great Britain a cession of the Floridas, with- 
out, as ib believed, any description of limits, but with a knowledge of 
the provisional treaty of November, 1782, and under what were the 



[Doc. No. 43.] 87 

boundaries of those Provinces in the hands of Great Britain, some 
difficulty arose between the United States and Spain, in relation to 
this boundary, which led to the treaty of 2Tth of October, 1795, com- 
monly called the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real; by the second article 
in which, it was agreed that the boundary line between the United 
States and the Floridas shall be designated by a line, beginning on 
the river Mississippi, at the noriliernmost part of the 31st degree of 
latitude north of the equator, which from thence shall be drawn due 
east to the middle of the river Apalachicola, or Chattahoochie ; thence, 
along the middle thereof, to its junction with the Flint; thence, 
straight to the head of St. Mary's river; and thence, down the middle 
thereof, to the Atlantic ocean. 

It was provided by the 3d article of that treaty, that a commis- 
sioner and surveyor, to be appointed by each of the contracting 
jDarties, should run and mark the boundary, according to the stipula- 
tions of the 2d article, above recited. It was further stipulated, that 
they should make plats, and keep journals of their proceedings, which 
should be considered as part of the convention, and have the same 
force as if they were inserted therein. In conformity with this stip- 
ulation, Andrew Ellicott was appointed commissioner, and Thomas 
Freeman surveyor on the part of the United States, for the purpose 
of running the line mentioned in the 2d article. This appointment 
was made in M.a}\ 1796. It appears from a letter of the commis- 
sioner, dated 22d March, 1800, to the then Secretary of State, that a 
report of what had been done would soon be completed, but that re- 
port, if made, is not now, as far as the committee are informed, to 
be found. It appears from the same letter, that our commissioner 
experienced great difficulty and embarrassment in the execution of 
the duty assigned to him, from the Indians, and he intimates at the 
instigation of others. The journal of Ellicott was published in 1803. 
It appears that the commissioners did not run and mark the line from 
the junction of Chattahoochie and Flint rivers to the head of St. 
Mary's; but they designated a point, which should be taken as the one 
to or ncnr which a line should be drawn from P'lint river, which, 
when drawn, was to be final; proAdded, it passed not less than one 
mile north of a certain mound, erected by them; but if, on experi- 
ment, it should be found to pass within less than a mile north of said 
mound, it should be corrected to carry it to that distance. This 
mound is near the Okefenoke Swamp. It appears from a report of 
John McBride, a surveyor, appointed by Georgia in the year 1827, 
that there is a stream, called by him the south branch of the St. 
Mary's, much farther south than the one considered the head branch 
of that river bj^ the American and Spanish commissioners; and he 
says, that both its length, its volume of water, and general direction, 
coincide in favor of the south branch. It appears, by a document 
referred to as part of this report, marked A, that, under a resolution 
of the State of Georgia, in 1818, the Governor of that State ap- 
pointed commissioners to examine and report Avhether Ellicott's 
mound was the true head of the St. Mary's: and from the letter of 
the Governor, in 1819, to the Secretary of War, it appears that the 
commissioners had reported that, after a careful examination, they 
found the head of St. Mary's to agree with the report made by Mr. 
Ellicott. Two of the commissioners, in a paper referred to as part of 



88 [Doc. No. 43.] 

this report, marked B, think it probable that they may have been mis- 
led by their guide — assigning as the reasons of that impression, 1st, 
that they recollect to have seen what appeared to them, through thick 
brush wood, to be a lively little stream, emptying in through the 
opposite or right bank of the southern or middle fork of the St. 
Mary's; which, being pointed out to the pilot, he replied that the 
branch they were pursuing was the right one ; and, 2d, by the repre- 
sentation given by the survey of McBride. After this review of the 
evidence, it will be seen by the House that the question is. What is 
the head or source of the St. Mary's ? for the other end of the line, to 
wit: the junction of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers, being uncon- 
tested, so soon as the head of the St. Mary's is ascertained, all diffi- 
culty ceases as to the boundary. The committee are of opinion, upon 
the whole view of the case, that the point designated by the American 
and Spanish commissioners ought to be considered as the head of St. 
Mary's. They consider the solution of the question to depend on 
this, which stream is to be considered the true St. Mary's river, ac- 
cording to reputation, and the understanding and acquiescence of the 
parties concerned. As far back as 1800, the commissioners of the two 
Governments considered, upon examination, what is now called the 
north branch as the St. Mary's; and the Georgia commissioners, in 
1819, concur with Mr. P'llicott as to the head of that river; although 
another river unites with this, Avhich vents more water, and is longer, 
yet, if it were not called or known by the name of St. Mary's, these 
circumstances would not alter the case. The committee infer that it 
was not so called or known from these circumstances; 1st, that the 
commissioners of two Governments were appointed to settle and de- 
cide a contested question of boundp,ry: to do this, the head of the St. 
Mary's being one of the termini, it became their duty to seek for in- 
formati(m from every source, accessible to them, as to which stream 
was the St. Mary's, and what was its head. Haying fixed upon a 
particular stream, as being the true river, and designated a point as 
its source, and this being matter of notoriety. Georgia acquiesced, 
without objection, as far as the committee are informed, till 1818; 
and then the report of their own commissioners coincided with EUi- 
cott's designation, and that, too, though they had as their pilot, as the 
committee believe, the very person on whose suggestion they had 
been appointed. In this report, Georgia acquiesced, as far as the 
committee is informed, until recently. As far as the nature of this 
unsettled country will admit of reputation as to the names of its 
streams, these facts may be considered as probably the best evidence 
which was the St. Mary's river, and the head of that river, as in- 
tended in the several State papers above recited. There is an ex- 
ample mentioned in one of the printed documents, which will illus- 
trate the idea of the committee. It is now believed to be a geo- 
grajiliical fact, that the ^lissourj is a longer stream than the Mis- 
sissipju, and we believe vents more water; and yet, as it never has 
been called by the name of Mississi])pi, if we were now called upon 
to decide what was the head of the Mississippi, we should take, not 
the source of the Missouri, though it unites with the other stream, 
but the source of what is, and has been called the Mississippi. It is 
not intended to say that the case in question is as palpable; but, after 
settling the principle, that, in ascertaining the head of a stream of a 
given name, we must inquire where two streams unite, not which is 



[Doc. No. 43.] 89 

the longest, or vents the most water, but which has been called and 
known by the given name, we are then to decide, upon the best evi- 
dence in our power, as to that fact; and we think the evidence is in 
faA^or of the stream designated by Ellicott. 

Resolred, therefore^ as the opinion of the committee, that, in run- 
ning the boundary line between Georgia and Florida, the point desig- 
nated b}^ the commissioners under the 3d article of the treaty of 1795, 
between the United States and Spain, ought to be the termination of 
the line from the junction of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers. 



(A.) 



In Senate. l)>th D''c'< niber, 1818. 

Resolved, Tliat his Excellency the Governor be reqtiested to ap- 
point two fit and proper persons to proceed, without delay, to ascer- 
tain the true head of the St. Mary's river; and, if it shall appear 
that the mound thrown up by Mr. Ellicott and the Spanish deputa- 
tion is not at the place set forth in the treaty with Spain, that they 
make a special report of the facts to the Governor, who shall there- 
upon communicate the same to the President of the United States, 
accompanied with a request that the lines may be run agreeable to 
the true intent and meaning of the aforesaid treaty. 

A7ul it is further resolved. That the Governor order out a suitable 
detachment of militia to protect the said commissioners in the per- 
formance of their duty. 

Approved : l^th Decemher, 1819. 



Executive Department, Georgia, 
Milledgeville, 11th February^ 1819. 

Sir: I take the liberty to call your attention to the subject of the 
contemplated line between this State and the Province of East 
Florida, which you no doubt recollect is expected to be run this 
spring by the General Government. 

Preparations are making to commence surveying that section of 
country in a short time ; it is, therefore, very desirable that the line 
.should be defined as early as possible. 

The Legislature of this State, at their late session, having received 
satisfactory information that the mound thrown up by Mr. Ellicott 
and the Spanish deputation, on the Okefenoke Swamp, is not the 
true head of St. Mary's river, as contemplated in the treaty with 
Spain, directed me to appoint commissioners to ascertain the fact, 
and to communicate the result to the President of the United States, 
witli a request that the line might be laid out agreeably to their 
rejDort. Majors (jeneral Floyd and Thompson, and Brigadier Gen- 
eral Blackshear, have been appointed to, and are now engaged in, 
the performance of that duty. Their report shall be transmitted 
to you as soon as I receive it. 

I have every reason to believe that the head of that river will be 
found at least twenty miles south of the point agreed on by Mr. 
Ellicott and the Spanish commissioner. Should this conjecture prove. 



90 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

to be a fact, the State of Geor^ria Avill be entitled to the hiiid within 
that boundaiy. accordintr to the treaty with Spain. In any event, it 
is of great importance that one of those lines should be completed as 
soon as circumstances will justify the measure. 

Enclosed. I hand you a resolution of the Legislature on the subject. 
With high respect. I am. sir. 

Your obedient servant. 

WM. KABrX. 
The Hon. John C. Calhoun, 

Secretary of War. Washington City. 



Executive Department. Georgia, 

Milledgeville. 2>d March, 1819. 
Sir: On the 17th ultimo. T had the honor to address you on the 
subject of the contemplated line between this State and the Province 
of East IHorida. I stated tliat the Legislature of this State had 
directed me to appoint commissioners to ascertain the true head or 
source of the St. Mary's river, and I promised to forward their re- 
port to you as soon as the same was received. The conmiissionei-s 
have returned, and reported, that, after a carefiri examination, they 
found the head of that river to agree with the report made by ^Ir. 
Ellicott, and prove, beyond the possibility of doubt, that the informa- 
tion received by the Legislature of this State relative to that subject 
was incorrect. I flatter myself that directions will be forwarded to 
Mr. Lumpkin immediately to close that line, according to the treaty 
with Spain. And. if the General Government can afford us assist- 
ance in guarding the surveyors who will be engaged in laying out 
the country, it will be acknowledged as a great accommodation. 
I am. with high respect, 

Your obedient servant. 

AVM. RABUN. 
Hon. J. C. Calhoun, 

Secrt'tary of War. 



(B.) 



In the year 1817, Captain AVilliam Cone, then a member of the 
Legislature of (Georgia, represented, on his own knowledge of the 
St. Mary's river, that Mr. Ellicott had mistaken its true head or 
source ; and that an accurate sur\ey would establish the fact, that the 
head or source of the middle fork or branch, (perhaps then called the 
South Branch.) which was twenty miles south of Mr. Ellicott's 
Mound, would be found to be the true source of the St. Mary's river, 
and therefore the true point of demarcation between the State of 
Georgia and the then Spanish province of East Florida. The Gov- 
ernor of (Jeorgia was authorized by the Legislature to appoint com- 
missioners to ascertain the trutli of tlie facts alleged by Captain 
Cone. The undersigned, with Brigadier General David Blackshear, 
were appointed and specially instructed by the Governor of Georgia. 
They employed Ca])*r.in Cone a« a pilot, and, witli a fomjietent sur- 



[Doc. No. 43.] 91 

veyor, caused to be measured (beginning at or near the point des- 
ignated by Ellicott as the head of the St. Mary's river) the distance 
from that point, by the meanders of the northwest branch, to its junc- 
tion with the stream or branch represented by Cone to be the true 
source of the St. Mary's, and up the left bank of the latter branch, 
until the commissioners reached an extensive swamp, into which the 
pilot, with tAvo of the commissioners, (the undersigned.) penetrated 
about half a mile, and saw no water or water channel. Captain 
Cone was then directed by the commissioners to pass entirely across 
the swamp, (to the pine barren beyond the swaipp,) who, on his re- 
turn, reported that there was no stream of water or water channel 
in the swamp; and that we had reached the head of the branch to 
which he had referred in the information given by him to the Legis- 
lature. On a comparison of the length of the two streams, it was 
found that the latter, from its junction with the other to the swamp 
above referred to, was much the shortest ; and the commissioners con- 
sequently reported in favor of the former as the head or source of the 
St. Mary's river. 

It is, however, more than probable that the commissioners may have 
been misled by the inadvertency of Captain Cone, who professed to 
be intimately acquainted with the geography of that part of the 
country, and on whom they were instructed to rely, who may have 
been diverted from the principal stream by mistaking a branch of it. 
And we the undersigned are inclined to this belief, first, because we 
recollected to have seen, a short distance below the swamp, to which 
we have referred, what appeared to us, through thick brushwood, to 
be a lively little stream, emptying in through the opposite or right 
bank of the southern or middle fork of the St. Mary's, which was 
pointed out to the pilot; who replied, that the branch we were then 
pursuinc: was the riffht one; and because of the representation given 
by the survey of McBride. JOHN FLOYD, 

WILEY THOMPSON. 

Fehruary lUh, 1828. 



Resolutions of the Legislature of Florida in relation to the Georgia 

Boundary. 

Resolved, That it is the opinion of the present Legislative Council 
of Florida, that the sixth article of the treaty between Spain and the 
United States, of the 22d of February, 1819, secures to the inhab- 
itants then occupjdng, and those who may occupy, the ceded Terri- 
tory, as Spain held them under the treaty of 1795, an admission into 
the Union, as soon as it may be consistent with the principles of the 
Federal Constitution: and that any diminution of its limits, or alter- 
ation of its lines, will be a manifest violation of the supreme law, an 
act of oppression to the inhabitants of the ceded territory, and of 
injustice to the United States. 

Resolved, further. That the Legislative Council, representing the 
people of the ceded territory, respectfully, in the name of the said 
people, protest against the passage of any law that will change the 
iDoundary between this Territory and Georgia ; and that our delegate 
in Congress be requested to continue his exertions in resisting the 

43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 9 



92 [Doc. No. 43.] 

pretensions now set up by Georgia to fifteen liiuulred thousand acres 
of the land ceded by Spain to the United States. 

Resolved, further^ That commissioners ought to be appointed, in 
behalf of the Territory, to ascertain the true sources of the St. Mary's, 
so that our rights may be defended on facts, as well as the treaty; 
and to make a report at an early period of the approaching session 
of Congress. 

Be it therefore resolved^ That the Governor appoint three fit and 
discreet persons, as commissioners, to cany the foregoing resolutions 
into etfect; and that any two of them, provided the other cannot at- 
tend, are hereby empowered to act. 

Resolved^ further. That our delegate be requested to obtain an 
order for ascertaining the true boundar}' l^etween Florida and Ala- 
bama, or the passage of a law for that object. 

" Resolved furtJier. That the said delegate be requested to use his 
exertions to remove the Florida Indians from this Territory." 
Adopted this 23d November, 1828. 

THOS. MUNROE, 
Clerk Legislative Council^ Florida. 



Report to., and resolution of, the Legislature of the State of Georgia.^ 
in relation to running and faring the boundary line between the 
said State and the Territory of Florida. 

Executive Department, Georgia, 

December 26, 1828.. 
Gentlemen : I transmit the enclosed report and resolutions, agree- 
ably to the wishes of the General Assembly. 

I am, gentlemen, your obedient servant, 

JOHN FORSYTH. 

The Hon. the Representatives from Georgia. 

in the Congress of the United States. Washington City. 



The Joint Committee on the state of the R< public, to whom was re- 
ferred that part of the Governor's communication tvhich relates to 
the dividing line between Georgia and the Territory of Florida, 
have had the same under consideration, together with the accom- 
panying documents, and. after an attentive examination of the 
subject, r.i?~^rt: 

That the Executive, conformably to the resolution of the last ses- 
sion, caused the report then made to be laid before Congress, and, in 
further compliance with the request of the Legislature, opened a cor- 
respondence with the President of the United States, in which the 
claims of Georgia to her legitimate aiid constitutional boundary 
were zealously and ably asserted. The report made to the Senate 
of the United States, by the judicial committee, recommended the 
postponement of the subject until the ensuing session. That to the 
House of Representatives was drawn to a nu)re definite conclusion, 
b}^ resolving, " as the opinion of the counnittee, that, in running the 
boundary line between Georgia and Florida, the point designated by 



[Doc. No. 43.] 93 

the commissioners under the third article of tlie treaty of 1795, be- 
tween the United States and Spain, ought to be the termination of the 
line from the junction of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers." This 
report was not acted upon; the subject, consequently, is yet to be 
discussed and decided. Your committee, reposing full confidence 
in the General Government, and deeply sensible of the inviolability 
of Georgia's claim, cannot but express their disappointment that 
the committee should, upon the evidence before it, have hesitated 
to recommend the rejDeal of the act of Congress of 1826, or such a 
modification of it as would have enabled the President to empower 
commissioners, in conjunction with this Government, to run and 
mark the line agreeably to the rights of the parties; and still more 
are they surprised that reasons should have been sought after, and 
arguments employed, on which no just inference against our claim 
can be sustained. The whole argument used by the committee 
charged with this matter has for its foundation, and arises out of, 
the mistake of Mr. Ellicott and the Spanish commissioner, in desig- 
nating the north branch as the true source of the St. Mary's. This 
mistake is the keystone of the whole arch; it is from this that they 
say the i orth prong was called St. Mary's and ought to be so con- 
sidered ; it is this that led them into the error of declaring that the 
commissioners of the two Governments were appointed to settle and 
decide a contested (}uestion of boundary; and because this mistake 
Avas not detected before the line w^as about to be run, the acquiescence 
of Georgia is presumed, and urged as an argument against her claim. 
It is a fact admitted by all parties, and which forms the very 
essence of this controversy, that the line between the Chattahoochie 
and Flint rivers, ai.cl the head of St. Marj^'s river, was neither traced 
nor marked by the commissioners a]3pointed under the third article 
of the treaty with Spain. From that article they derived their 
powers, and by a reference to it, it will appear that they were not 
plenipotentiaries, but merely ministerial agents, acting under orders 
to run and mark the line according to the stipulations of the 2d 
article of the treaty, which is in the following words : " the southern 
boundar}^ of the United States, which divides their territorj' from 
the Spanish colonies of East and West Florida, shall be designated 
hj a line beginning on the river Mississippi, at the northernmost 
part of the 31st degree of latitude north of the equator, which from 
thence shall be drawn due east to the middle of the river Apalachi- 
cola. or Chattahoochie ; thence along the middle thereof, to its junc- 
tion with the Flint: thence straight to the head of St. Clary's river; 
and thence, down the middle thereof, to the Atlantic Ocean." From 
the Mississippi to the Chattahoochie, thej' executed their commission 
according to the stipulations of the treaty. The remaining part of 
the duty assigned them they neglected to perform; and whatever 
agreement they may have made by virtue of the powers invested in 
the third article cannot be reasonably insisted upon as authority 
for varying the true line, as the article, in its most enlarged con- 
struction, does not extend so far as to justif;\^ the running of the line 
in any other direction, or from and to any other points, than those 
designated in the 2d article. The point of departure, ar.d terminat- 
ing point, are both fixed by the 2d article; and it is provided in the 
3d, specially, that the commissioners should run and mark from and 
to those points. The points referred to are from the junction of the 



94 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Chaltalioochie and Flint rivers, to the heads of the St. Mary's river, 
and not to mound A, or mound B, or to any other indefinite place, 
to be fixed upon at the commissioners' discretion. As the proceedings 
of those commissioners present the only difficulty, your committee 
beg leave to cite the whole article under which they acted, to wit : 
" In order to carry the preceding article into eifect, one connnis- 
sioner and one surveyor shall be appointed by each of the cortracting 
parties, who shall meet at the Natchez, on the left side of the river 
Mississippi, before the expiration of six months from the ratification 
of this convention; and they shall proceed to run and mark this 
boundary according to the stipulations of said article; they shall 
make plats, and keep journals of their proceedings, which shall be 
considered as part of this convention, and shall have the same force 
as if they were inserted therein." It is charitable to presume that 
the Judiciary Committee did not examine minutely the provisions 
of this article, or they would lot have exposed their judgment to 
impeachment by asserting that " the commissioners of the two Gov- 
ernments were appointed to settle and decide a contested question of 
'boundary.^'' 

There is no discretion conferred in this article. If their plats and 
journals were to have the same force as the convention, they were 
nevertheless obliged to be in accordance with its stipulation. If, 
therefore, Mr. Ellicott agreed, as is insisted upon, that ove mile 
north of mound B, should be as far south as the line, when run, 
should approach, it is very palpable that he exceeded his authority, 
even though he may have made a plat of mound B, and journalized 
the agreement. He was not sent there to make an agreement defining 
a point to which the line should be run at some future time, but to 
run and mark the line between points already described. If per- 
mitted to vary the stipulation of the treaty, he could, with as much 
propriety and equal justice, have fixed upon a point fifty miles fur- 
ther in the interior of Georgia. The question is. did the Spanish 
and American commissioners run and mark the line from the junc- 
tion of Chattahoochie and Flint rivers to the head of the St. Mary's 
river, as they were directed to do? No: they ran no line at all be- 
tween those points! What did they do? They agreed that the line 
should be run at some future time, and by some other perstMis, to 
a certain other point, different from that fixed by the treaty I ! ! The 
committee who have claimed its extraordinary poAver for the commis- 
sioners place themselves in an inextricable dilemma, as they not only 
consider themselves authorized to overturn the treaty they were ap- 
pointed to carry into effect, but likewise assume for them the nght 
to bargain away the soil and sovereignty of a sovereign State, who 
could not. under her obligations to the Union, interfere in settling 
the boundaries of the United States, though on that line of it she 
was more immediately concerned than all her sister States together. 
So far from those commissioners being justified in the exercise of 
the power which they arrogated, your committee, next to the loss of 
the liberties of their own State, would regret to see the time when 
the Government of the United States should become so forgetful 
of the limitations of her prerogatives, as to assume the power of 
ratifying a treaty with any foreign nation, by which the least por- 
tion "^of the soil of a State should be taken from her without her 
consent. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 95 

The United States is bound by the Constitution to protect us from 
invasion. Upon the supposition, then, that the line had been run 
and marked agreeably to the report of the Spanish commissioners, 
and had been sanctioned by the Government, by a ratification of the 
treaty, it would have imposed upon her the disagreeable alternative 
of breaking the treaty with Spain, or abandoning her obligations to 
the confederacy. If P^lorida were yet a Spanish province, Georgia, 
would have a right to require the United States to perform her sacred 
engagements, by driving from our soil the Spaniard who invaded it. 
"•T'o provide for the common defence^'' is one of the principal objects 
of our political association; and could the United States humiliate 
themselves upon our application to have our soil and our sovereignty 
restored to us, by pleading that they had ceded it to Spain, and there- 
fore could not interfere, such a disregard of her obligations would be 
productive of the worst of consequences, as it would destroy all con- 
fidence in the protection of the Constitution. It is not expected, now 
that the Federal Government is the proprietor of Florida, that it can 
be unmindful of the declaration in the Constitution, that " no new 
State shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other 
State, nor any State be formed by the junction of two or more States, 
or farts of States, without the consent of the Legislatures of the 
States concerned." Has the Legislature of Georgia ever given her 
assent, in any manner, that that portion of the State should be de- 
tached and set apart to assist in the formation of another State ? The 
foregoing allusion to the obligations of the General Government to 
the States, we have thought it advisable to make, because it does not 
appear, from the report made to the House of Representatives, that 
the committee themselves consider Ellicott's mound to be the head of 
St. Mary's ; but they say it " ought to be so considered, because EUi- 
cott and the Spanish commissioner agreed that it should be so, and 
that the Georgia commissioners, in 1819, concurred in the designa- 
tion : from wdiich circumstances it had the reputation of being the 
head of St. Mary's; and because of that reputation, it should be con- 
sidered the true head or source of the St. Mary's." This, though not 
precisely their language, is the amount of their argument. Your 
committee, conceiving that they have most conclusively proven the 
American and Spanish commissioners to have acted extra officially 
in making mounds and agreements not provided for by the treaty, 
any reputation of names inferred from those acts is too vague to re- 
quire serious examination. 

In regard to the asquiescence of Georgia, the facts cited in the re- 
port to Congress, prove that the authorities of the State were de- 
ceived. If Georgia had considered the act of the United States and 
Spain, as decisive and final, she would not have deputed commis- 
sioners to have made an examination. The very deputation shows 
that she conceived, as must be admitted, that she had a right to be 
heard in settling her own boundary. She did not, though, send those 
commissioners to make a final settlement of her boundary. She could 
only confer such power w^hen the United States was ready to join her 
in the commission. They were sent merelj^ upon an exploring tour, 
for the satisfaction of the State, on a disputed point. The IJnited 
States were under no obligation to abide by the opinion formed. 
How, then, can the United States, upon any principle of reciprocity, 



96 [Doc. No. 43.] 

contend that Georgia should be forestalled b}^ an opinion as to an 
isolated fact, to Avhich they held themselves free to agree or dis- 
agree? The acquiescence of Georgia, in the extent to which it has 
been given, only j^roves that she was then, as she is now, and ever will 
be, while she respects the rights of others as she does her own, willing 
to be governed in the running of that line by the true points. She 
desired, then, no more than she believed to be her right ; and from the 
evidence then in her possession, she supposed the point fixed upon by 
Ellicott, Avas the true point. She contends now for no more than 
later developments, incontestibly prove to be her own. 

Your committee feel authorized by the facts, to deny that Georgia 
has ever acquiesced so far as to agree that the line should be run to 
Ellicott's mound. There has been no definite act of the State, by 
which the matter has been settled, or considered settled, by either 
party. It is true her commissioners believed that the mound was at 
the source of the river, upon whose information the Governor's opin- 
ion was then predicated; all of which was mainly owing to the confi- 
dence reposed in the previous examinations of Mr. Ellicott. They 
were not, however, associated with commissioners of the United States 
to settle the boundary : thej^ were acting merely ex-parte, in the search 
of information, whose report, if correct, would not have bound the 
United States, and, if erroneous, cannot bind Georgia : neither this 
nor any other act includes either party, because the parties never 
have acted in conjunction; consequently, the true head of the St. 
Mary's has always been debateable, and from the limited information 
as to the topography of the country, it Avas obliged to remain so, until 
commissioners were duly appointed by the parties to ran and nuu-lc 
the line. The argument of the committee, that the north prong was 
called the St. Mary's, and therefore, " intended in the several state 
papers above recited," to which they attach the greatest importance, 
is based upon the same mistake of their own agent ; for. from the 
evidence adduced by them, it appears that P^llicott was the first who 
gave it the name of St. Marj^'s. in exclusion of the other branches; 
and by an assumption of their own. they deprive the southern branch 
of a participation in the rights of a name. This argument cannot 
avail, even upon the principle which they were forced to admit in 
their illustration, until a name for the south prong, different from 
St. Mary's, shall have been established, and that too, known to the 
King of Great Britain, when the boundary of Georgia was described; 
as it is clear, by the commission to Governor Wright, that it Avas in- 
tended by the royal government, to extend the eastern boundary of 
Georgia to the most wuthern stream of St. Mary's, and thence to the 
head thereof. The riAer took its name at the disemboguement : of 
course, all streams coming in on the south were southern streams 
of that riA'er. To the head of the most southern stream, is the point 
at which the eastern line determines; for it is in a subsequent clause 
that the southern boundary is described to be " thence AvestAvard, as 
far as our territories extend, by the north boundary line of our prov- 
inces of East and West Florida." 

By this commission, all previous boundaries of Georgia Avere re- 
voked and determined. To this. then, we are to look for our geo- 
graphical limits; and fortunately for us, in this exigency, it describes 
that stream of the St. Mary's to be the head, or source, for which we 



[Doc. No. 43.] 97 

are now contending, with an accuracy that can no longer be misunder- 
stood. It is probable that the course of the river was not accurately 
known; from which it is inferred, that it was the intention of the 
Royal commission that Georgia should extend as far south as the 
most southern stream^ and to the head thereof, or that part of the 
description would not have been incorporated in the eastern bound- 
ary. It is reasonable to believe that this identical stream was meant, 
and not the stream at the disemboguement, which was between Amelia 
island and the main, which is one of the mouths of the St. Mary's. 

It could not have applied to that, as both the provinces of Georgia 
and Florida were, at that time, under the same regal government, 
and Amelia was not then, nor has it at any time since, been consid- 
ered as belonging to Georgia. If, then, it did not mean the southern 
stream at the mouth of the river, it must have meant the southei-n 
stream higher up the river. It is from this charter that our I^egis- 
lature conceived themselves authorized, in 1783, to declare our bound- 
ary to be '' from the fork of the Apalachicola, where the Chatta- 
hoochie and Flint rivers meet, in a direct line to the head or source 
of the sovthermnost stream of the St. Mary's river, and along the 
course of said river to the Atlantic Ocean " — which furnishes addi- 
tional evidence' that the south prong was known at that day to be the 
head of the river. If the southern stream were not ascertained to 
lead to the source of the river, there would be more plausibility in 
the entertainment of different opinions upon the subject; as, in that 
event, the boundary acknowledged by Great Britain in the treaty of 
'82, and provided for us by the treaty with Spain in '9;"), would vary 
from that described by the regal commission of '64, and our act of 
'83, But when all these documents agree, that the head of the St. 
Mary's is one of the points by which the boundary was to be regii- 
lated, and the rights conveyed in the charter of Florida are not 
violated, does it not require a tenacity of opinion, approaching 
obstinacy in error, to insist upon a deviation? It is not expected 
that Congress will be led by sophistry, to the support of an erroneous 
claim. These questions, then, result : if the line were to be run to 
the point agreed upon by the conmiissi oners under the 3d article of 
the treaty with Spain, would it run according to the boundary de- 
scribed for us in our old charter? according to the boundary which 
is secured to us in the definitive treaty of peace with Great Britain? 
which is provided for us in the treaty of '95, with the Spanish Gov- 
ernment? which our act of '83 recognizes? and, more than all, which 
our constitution consecrates? 

Your committee cannot believe that, when the subject is fully in- 
vestigated by Congress, the Federal Government will be so unmind- 
ful of justice and her obligations to one of tlic confederacy, even 
upon the hypothesis that she could succeed, as to claim an advantage 
which is deriA'ed solely from the negligence and error of her own 
agent. They, therefore, beg leave to recommend the following 
resolutions: 

Resolved, That it is desirable to the State of Georgia, to have the 
boundary line between her and Florida, run and marked as speedily 
as will meet the convenience of the United States. 

Resolved, As the act of Congress of 14th May, 1826, providing for 
the running and marking that line, retpiires it to be run and 
marked to the point designated as the head of St. ]\Iary's, hy the 



98 [Doc. No. 43.] 

commissioners appointed under the third article of the treaty of 
friendship, limits, and navigation, between the United States and 
Spain, of i^Tth October, 1795; and. as that line is not. in the opinion 
of (Georgia, the true boundary, that Congress be earnestly requested, 
at the present se&sion, to repeal the aforesaid act, and to pass another, 
authorizing the line to be run and marked according to the provi- 
sions of the 2d article of said treaty. 

Resolved^ That, should Congress refuse to make any provision for 
running the aforesaid line, in conjunction with the authorities of 
Georgia, the Governor be authorized arid requested to api:>oint com- 
missioners, to be accompanied with a competent surveyor and artist, 
to run and mark the line according to the stipulations contained in 
the 2d article of the treaty between the United States and Spain, of 
the 27th of October, 1795. 

Resolved^ That the Governor be requested to forward a copy to 
our Senators and Eepresentatives in Congress, to be by them laid 
before the Senate and House of Representatives of the Congress of 
the United States. 

Secretary or State's Oitice, Georgia, 

Milledgeville, Decernher 26, 1828. 
The above and foregoing is from the original deposited in this 
office. Approved by the Governor the 20th instant. 

E. HAMILTON, Secretary. 



February 13, 1830. 

The CommAttee on the Judiciai'y^ to which teas referred certain reso- 
lutions adopted by the Legislature of Georgia, approved the 19th 
Decem,her last, relative to the boundary between that State and the 
Territory of Florida, report: 

That they have bestowed upon the subject that attentive considera- 
tion which its great importance demanded, and which is always due 
to any question involving the territorial limits of a sovereign State 
of this Union. 

Before they proceed to state the result of their deliberations, it is 
proper that they should present a brief historical sketch of the facts, 
out of which the controversy between Georgia and Florida has 
arisen. 

By the second article of the ])rovisional treaty of peace between the 
United States and (Jreat Britain, concluded at Paris, on the thirtieth 
day of November, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-two, it was 
agreed that the southern boundary of the United States, commencing 
in the middle of the iiver Mississippi, " at the northernmost part oi 
the thirty-first degree of north latitude," should run from thence due 
east " to the middle of the river Apalachicola or Chattahoochie ; thence 
along the middle thereof to its junction with the Flint river; tJwnce 
straight to the head of_ St. Clary's river; and thence down along the 
middle of St. Mary's river, to the Atlantic Ocean.'' 

On the twentieth day of January, one thousaiul seven hundred and 
eighty-three. Great Britain ceded East and West Florida to Spain ; and 



[Doc. No. 43.] 99 

by the second article of the treaty of San Lorenzo el Real, concluded 
on the twentieth day of October, one thousand seven hundred and 
ninety-five, between the United States and Spain, it was agreed that, 
" to prevent all disputes on the subject of the boundaries which sepa- 
rate the territories of the two high contracting parties, it is hereby 
declared and agred as follows, to wit : ' The southern boundary of 
the United States, which divides their territory from the Spanish 
colonies of East and West Florida, shall be designated by a line be- 
ginning on the river Mississippi, at the northernmost part of the 
thirty-first degree of latitude north of the equator, which from thence 
shall be drawui due east to the middle of the river Apalachicola, or 
Chattahoochie ; thence along the middle thereof to its junction with 
the Flint; thence straujlit to the head of St. Manfs river, and thence 
down the middle thereof to the Atlantic Ocean/' And it was fur- 
ther agreed, by the third article of the same treaty, that, " in order 
to carry the preceding article into effect, one commissioner and one 
surveyor shall be appointed by each of the contracting parties, 
who shall meet at the Natchez, on the left side of the river Missis- 
sippi, before the expiration of six months from the ratification of this 
convention, and tlie}^ shall proceed to run and mark this boundary, 
according to the stipulations of the said article. They shall make 
plats and keep journals of their proceedings, which shall be consid- 
ered as part of this convention, and shall have the same force as if 
they were inserted therein." 

Andrew Ellicott was appointed the commissioner under this treaty, 

on the part of the United States, and Don Minor, a Captain in 

the army of his Catholic Majesty, was appointed the commissioner 
on the part of Spain. 

Mr. Ellicott and Captain Minor proceeded to run and mark this 
part of the line which ran from the Mississippi to the Chattachoochie. 
In September, 1799, when they were preparing to extend the line from 
the confluence of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers, to the head of 
the St. Mary's, the hostile disposition and attempts of the Indians, 
compelled them to relinquish their design. As the western point of 
tliis line Avas the junction of two rivers, it could not be mistaken ; and 
the conmiissioners knew, that, by ascertaining the head of the St. 
Mary's and fixing a permanent mark upon the spot, they would thus 
establish the eastern point; and that, between these two points, the 
line could be run and marked at any future day. They accordingly 
proceeded to the mouth of the St. JSIarj^'s, and ascended that river, to 
the place whence it issues, from the Okefenoke swamp ; and, on the 
26th of February, 1800, they erected a mound of earth, on the West 
side of its main outlet, as near to the edge of the swamp as they could 
advance, on account of the water. It was impossible for the commis- 
sioners to follow this stream further, for the purpose of ascertaining 
precisely its head, as the swamp from which it ])roceeds is, at all 
times, almost impenetrable; and particularly at the season of the 
year when they were there. For this reason, the commissioners 
agreed, that the terminaticm of a line, supposed to be drawn north 
45° east 640 perches from the moupd which they had erected, should 
be taken as a point to or near which a line should be drawn from the 
mouth of Flint river; which line, when drawn, should be final, and 
considered as the permanent boundary between the United States 
and his Catholic Majesty, provided it passed not less than one mile 



100 [Doc. No. 43.] 

north of the mound: hut if. u])on experiment, it shoukl he found to 
pass within less than one mile north of the said mound, it should then 
be corrected to carry it to that distance. 

"With this arrangement. Mr. Ellicott believed he had every reason 
to be perfectly satisfied. 

The commissioners, after erectinor the mound, descended the St. 
jMary's, and encamped on the South end of Cumberland Island, 
where they remained from the (>th of March, until the 10th of April, 
1800, occupied in preparing the report of their proceedings, to be sub- 
mitted to their respective Governments. On the latter day. their re- 
ports were completed, and they left the Island. 

The committee entertain no doubt, from the testimony before 
them, but that this report was immediately transmitted to the office 
of the Secretary of State, although it cannot at this time be found. 
"Whether it has been mislaid or destroyed by fire is uncertain. For- 
tunately, however, Mr. Ellicott published his Journal in 1808, which 
contains all the information that could have been embraced in the 
report. 

It ma}^ here be proper to state, that our Minister at the Court of 
Spain, in obedience to his instructions, addressed an official note to the 
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs at Madrid, in the spring of 
1828, requesting a copy of the report of Messrs. Ellicott and ]Minor, 
to which no ansAver has ever yet been received by the Department of 
State. 

From February, 1800, until the year 1817, there is no evidence that 
(leorgia entertained any doubt of the correctness of the comuiissioners 
in the execution of their trust. In that year. Captain "William Cone, 
then a member of the Legishiture of Georgia, represented, from his 
own knowledge, that Mr. Ellicott had mistaken the true head of the 
St. Mary's; and, in consequence of this information, the Senate of 
that State, on the 19th December. 1818, adoi)ted a resolution request- 
ing the (iovernor thereof " to appoint two fit and proper persons to 
proceed, without delay, to ascertain the true head of the St. Mar3^'s 
river; and, if it shall api)ear that the mound thrown up by Mr. Elli- 
cott, and the Spanish (leputation. is not at the place set forth in the 
treaty with Spain, that the,y make a special report of the facts to the 
Governor, who shall thereupon comnnmicate the same to the President 
of the United States, accompanied with a request that the lines may 
be run agreeable to the time intent and meaning of the aforesaid 
treaty." Under this resolution, his excellency, William Eabun. then 
the Governor of Georgia, appoinetd Majors General Floyd and 
Thouipson, and Brigadier (General Blackshear. counnissioners: who, 
after a careful examination, with Captain Cone for their guide, re- 
ported, that they found the head of the St. Mary's to agree with the 
report made by ]Mr. Ellicott. (xovernor Eabun, in connnunicating 
this information to the Secretary of "War, in March, 1819, uses the 
strong expression, that the report of these counnissioners proved, 
" beyond the possibility of a doubt, that the infornuition received by 
the Legislature of this State was incorrect :" and in the same letter, 
he urges upon the Secretary of "War the propriety of running and 
closing the line iunuediately, according to the treaty with Spain. 

By the treaty conclmled at Washington, on the 2-2d February. 1819, 
between the I'nited States and Spain, East and West Florida were 
cedecl to the [^uitcd Slates. The ratifications of this treatv were 



[Doe. No. 43.] 101 

exchanj>-ecl at Washinoton. on the '2'2d Febrnan^ 1821. and thence- 
forth. East and West Fk)rida became a Territory of the United States. 

Tlie United States afterwards proceeded to sell and patent a lar^je 
portion of the land, inchuled within the present claim of (Georgia; 
withont ever suspecting that their right was doubtful, or that it 
would be contested. 

On the 4th May, 1826, the Congress of the United States, at the 
request of the delegation from Georgia, passed an act to authorize the 
President of the United States, to run and mark the line between 
Georgia and Florida. The first section of this act contains a proviso, 
" that the line so to be run and marked, shall be run straight from 
the junction of said rivers Chattahoochie and Flint, to the point des- 
ignated as the head of St. Marys' river, by the commissioners ap- 
pointed under the third article of the treaty of friendship, limits, 
and navigation, between the United States of America and King of 
Spain, made at San Lorenzo el Real, on the seven and twentieth day 
of October, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five." In pur- 
suance of this act, Thomas M. liandolph was appointed the connnis- 
sioner on the part of the United States, and Thomas Spalding, the 
commissioner on the part of Georgia. 

In March, 1827, these commissioners, together with John IMcBride, 
a survej'or appointed on the part of Georgia, entered upon the per- 
formance of their duties, and^ after having nearly completed the 
running and marking of the line, their operations were suspended, 
on the 26th April, by instructions from the Governor of Georgia to 
Mr. Spalding, directing him to suspend the completion of the line, 
until it should be ascertained whether the head of the St. ISIary's had 
been correctl}' determined. 

After this suspension of operations, Mr. McBride received instruc- 
tions from Governor Troup, dated on the 20th June, 1827, directing 
him " to ascertain the true head or source of the St. Maiy's river," 
which he immeditely proceeded to obey. 

There are three principal branches of that river: the north, the 
west, and the south; and it is evident from Mr. McBride's report to 
the Governor of Georgia, he conceived, that, to determine the head of 
the St. Mary's, designated in the treaty, he had nothing to do but 
ascertain which of these branches was the longest, and discharged the 
most water. Indeed, he expressly declares, that " to ascertain the 
source of each of these branches, their length, and relative magnitude 
at their points of continence \^ ith each other, was considered the ob- 
ject of my mission." 

Assuming this to be the true meaning of his instructions, he reported 
that he had found the south branch was longer than the north ; and 
that, at their confluence, whilst the south branch discharged 1.369 
cubic feet of water in a minute, the north branch discharged only 903 
cubic feet. From these premises alone, he concludes, that the head 
of the south branch is " the head of the St. Mary's, refeiTed to in the 
treatj'^ with Spain. 

There is a passage in the report of Mr. McBride to the Governor of 
Georgia, which the committee will transcribe into their report. In 
accounting for the mistake, Avhich he supposes to have been committed 
by Messrs. Ellicott and JNIinor, he uses the following language: 

" The United States' and Spanish conunissioners. Avho, in 18(H), at- 
tempted to ascertain the source of the St. Maiw's, in ascending the 



102 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

river with their canoes, passed the junction of the north and south 
branches, considering the former as the principal. That those com- 
missioners should ha\e made an erroneous determination, may be 
attributed to the deceptive appearance of the two branches at their 
confluence, and to the peculiarly unfavorable season in which their 
investigations were made. The channel of the north branch is wider 
than that of the south. Its depth is greater, and its water of a dark 
reddish color. At the point of disemboguement the south branch is 
a beautiful limped stream, whose narrow channel and transparent 
water, render it, apparently, one-third less than the north; but its 
velocity is one hundred and sixteen feet per minute, while that of the 
north branch is only thirty-eight. The disparity of width in these 
branches is accounted for by the difference of the countries in which 
they have their sources. That in which the south branch rises is 
gently undulating, and the transparency and low temperature of the 
water, prove its origin to be principally in springs. The vicinity of 
the sources of the north branch is frequently an extended plane, with 
but little elevation or depression, which, in rainy seasons, is com- 
pletely inundated for many miles ; and these vast sheets of water be- 
ing drained into the north branch, increase its volume to a torrent, 
which forms a channel much wider than the south branch. When 
the United States' and Spanish commissioners were here, in Febru- 
ar}', 1800, Mr. Ellicott, in his Journal, informs us that the swamps, 
at that season of the year, were '' absolutely impenetrable." in conse- 
puence of the preceding winter's rains. We cannot, therefore, be 
surprised at their failure to make a correct determination." 

Should the claim of Georgia be sustained, it will take from Florida 
a triangular tract of land, whose base is 157 miles, its perpendicular 
30 miles, and area 2,355 square miles, or 1,507,200 acres. 

The committee having thus made a* statement of the facts in the 
case, will now proceed briefl}'' to present their views upon the subject. 
Georgia, for the purpose of establishing her claim, ought clearly to 
prove, first, that the commissioners under the treaty of 1T9;"> with 
Spain, mistook '' the head of the St. Mary's," and ought, in seeking 
it, to have ascended to the source of the south branch of that river, 
instead of the north: and second, supposing the existence of such a 
mistake, that she has a right under the circumstances of this case, 
and after the lapse of more than a quarter of a century, to assert her 
claim. 

And. first, the counnittee are not satisfied that the commissioners 
under the treaty Avitli Spain have committed any mistake. On the 
contrary, they think that Mr. ^NIcBride proceeded upon mistaken 
principles. In their opinion. "' the head of the St. Mary's," desig- 
nated in the treaty, was to be ascertained by the reputation of the 
country about the time of its date — by the common understanding 
of those acquainted with the stream; rather than by a geometrical 
admeasurement of the length of its different branches, and the 
vohime of water emitted by each. Which is the principal branch of a 
river in a new coinitry, must, in the nature of things, be decided from 
its ai)))earance. and not from any actual measurement. Mr. McBride 
himself admits that the north branch, even when ho was there, in the 
midst of siunmer, appeared to be one-third larger than the south. 
Its channel is much wider and considerably deeper. In order to 



[Doc. No. 43.1 105 

make the discovery which Mr. McBride did, it was necessary to as- 
certain the relative velocity of the two streams by actual measure- 
ment. This expedient w^ould never be resorted to. either by the first 
settlers or the first visiters of a new country, for the purpose of ascer- 
taining the principal branch of a river. Their ej^es would deter- 
mine that question, and the name would follow the appearance. 

But, in considering this subject, it ought also to be recollected that 
Mr. McBride made his admeasurement in the very midst of summer,^ 
at the dryest season of the year. What would have been the result 
if the same experiment had been made at other seasons, we may con- 
jecture from his report. He tells us, " that the disparity of width 
in these branches is accounted for by the difference of the countries 
in which they have their sources. That in which the south branch 
rises is gently undulating, and the transparency and low temperature 
of the water prove its origin to be principally in springs. The 
vicinity of the sources of the north branch is frequently an extended 
plane, with but little elevation or depression, which, in rainy seasons, 
is completely inundated for many miles; and these vast sheets of 
water being drained into the north branch, increase its volume to a 
torrent, which forms a channel much wider than the south branch." 

There is one circumstance worthy of observation in the report of 
Mr. McBride. Although he sought information from every source 
within his power, yet, it does not appear, any person ever informed 
him either that the south branch had at any time been known by the 
name of St. Mary's, or that the north branch had not been known by 
that name. 

Governor Randolph, the commissioner of the United States, under 
the act of 1826, informs us, that " the head of St. Mary's was knoAvn 
as soon as there was a settlement at its mouth." That the Indian 
traders crossed the north branch about three miles below Ellicott's 
mound, at what was, and still is, called the Pine Log Crossing Place, 
and they were always said to have come by the head of St. ISIary's. 
On the other hand, he declares that the south branch has always 
been known by the name of " the south prong." 

The testimony before the committee presents other reasons for 
believing that the commissioners under the treaty committed no 
mistake, but, for the sake of brevity, they will not bring them into 
the view of the House in this report. 

The committee will now proceed to consider, whether, under the 
circumstances of this case, even admitting the existence of a mistake 
on the part of the American and Spanish commissioners, Georgia is 
not bound b}'^ their act. 

There is nothing which ought to be held more sacred by nations 
than the boundaries of each other. An unsettled boundary always 
produces jealousy and discord, and often war. Vattel, when speak- 
ing on the subject of usucaption and prescription among nations, de- 
clares, '" that their quarrels are of much greater consequence ; their 
disputes are usually terminated only by bloody wars; and, conse- 
quently, the peace and happiness of mankind nnich more powerfully 
require that possession on the part of sovereigns should not be easily 
disturbed; and that, if it has for a considerable length of time con- 
tinued uncontested, it should be deemed just and indisputable. Were 
we allowed to recur to antiquity on every occasion, there are few 



104 [Doc. No. 43.] 

sovereigns who could enjoy their riahts in security, and there would 
be no peace to be hoped for on earth.'" The learned author is here 
speaking of mere possession on the one side, and tacit acquiescence on 
the other. This case is much stronger against the State of Georgia. 
It is the case of a boundary ascertained b}^ virtue of a treaty thirty 
3'ears ago, and not merely acquiesced in on the part of Georgia, but 
sanctioned by the most solemn acts of recognition during a quarter 
of a century. 

Georgia, as a member of the federal Union, became a party to the 
treaty concluded at San Lorenzo el Real in 1795. One of the chief 
objects of this treaty was to provide for running and marking the 
line of separation between the Spanish colonies of P^ast and West 
Florida and the United States. It Avas the intention of both Gov- 
ernments, by this treaty, according to their own language, " to pre- 
vent all disputes on the subject of the boundaries which separate the 
territories of the two high contracting parties."' In order to give 
the proceedings of the commissioners appointed under this treaty a 
moi-e solenm sanction, it declared that the journals of their proceed- 
ings should be considered as a part of the convention itself, and 
should have the same force as if they were inserted therein. These 
commissioners proceeded in the most public manner to perform 
their duties. They determined the point Avhich should be consid- 
ered the head of the St. ]Mary"s, and erected a ])ermanent memorial 
by means of which it could easily be ascertained in time to come. 

The committee do not assert, that, if a clear mistake had been com- 
mitted by these commissioners, the Ignited States and Spain would 
have been absolutely concluded : but they consider it very clear, that 
in such a case the party injured ought to conq^lain within a reason- 
able time. In this case Geoi'gia, by her silence, acquiesced in the de- 
cision of the commissioners, until the year 1818. when she instituted 
an in(juiry on the sul)ject. which resulted in a solemn recognition 
of the accurac}' of the conunissioners in ascertaining the true head of 
the St. Mary's. After the United States acquired East and West 
Florida, in 1821, they sold and patented to individual purchasers a 
large proportion of the teriitory which Georgia now claims as her 
own. without a whis])er of disapprobation on the part of that State. 
\ay. more: in 1S2(>, on the request of her delegation. Congress passed 
a law, which recognised the point established by the conunissioners 
as the true head of the St. Clary's: and it was not until after the 
line had been nearly run and marked, in pursuance of this act. that 
she protested against its completion, upcm the ground that the com- 
missioners had mistaken the head of the St. Mary's. In the opinion 
of the committee this protest came too late; Georgia had no right, at 
that late day, to enforce a claim, which, if successful, would deprive 
Plorida of a most valuable portion of her territory, postpone her 
hoi)es of being admitted into the T'nion for many years, and for ever 
destroy her prosjiect of becoming a powerful State. Had Florida 
continued to be a Sj^anish province, we could not. in 1827, after the 
death of Mr. KUicott. and after the head of the St. Mary's had been 
fixed for seven and twenty years, have asked Sj^ain, with the least 
hope of success, to agiee (hat the head of another stream should be 
substituted for that which had been established, and thus take from 
her a tract of land containing l,r)00,(X)0 acres. Wliat we could not 
huve demanded from Spain, we ought not to re(juire from Florida. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 105 

Upon the whole, the coiuniittee recoiiiiiieiid the adoption of the 
following resolutions : 

Eesolred, That the line between Georgia and Florida ought to run 
from the junction of the rivers Chattahoochie and Flint to the point 
designated as the- head of the St. Mary's river b}'' the commissioners 
appointed under the treaty between the United States and Spain, 
concluded at San Lorenzo el Real, on the 20th day of October, 1795. 

Re.'^olred, That an appropriation ought to be made, for the purpose 
of enabling the President of the United States to complete the run- 
ning and marking of said line between Georgia and Florida, under 
the provisions of the act of the 4th May, 1826. 



Department of State, 

Washington, Uh Feh. 1830. 
Sir: I was mistaken in the information which I gave you, verbally, 
a few days ago, that the Spanish Government had promised Mr. 
Everett to furnish him with a copy of the journal of the commis- 
sioners, Ellicott and INlinor, for running the southern and southwest- 
ern boundary lines between the United States ana the Spanish do- 
minions, upon the application which he had addressed to that Gov- 
ernment, by the orders of this department. I find now, that Mr. 
Everett, by a despatch dated 1st May, 1828, acknowledged the receipt 
of his instructions upon this subject, and states that he lost no time 
in addressing an official note to the Secretary of State for Foreign 
Affairs, at Madrid, requesting a copy of the journal referred to; but 
that, up to the period of his departure from that capital, no answer 
was received by him to that note. 
I am, with great respect. 

Sir, your obedient servant, 

DANIEL BRENT. 
James Buchanan, Esq. 

House of Representatires. 



FLORIDA BOUNDARY. 

Message fro'^tv the President of the United States, tra>\smitting the 
information required hy a resolution of tlie House of Representa- 
tives of the ^lUth ultimo, respecting the report of the Cormnission- 
ers for running tlie line between the United States and Florida, 
under the treaty of 1705. 

To the House of Representatires of tlie United States: 

In pursuance of a resolution of the Flouse of Representatives of 
the 27th ultimo, calling for information respecting the report of the 
commissioners for nnniing and marking the line between the United 
States and Florida, under the treaty of 1795, I herewith communi- 
cate a report from the Secretary of State, containing the desired 
information. 

ANDREW JACKSON. 
Washington, March 15, 1830. 



106 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Department of State. 
Washington^ March 15, 1830. 
To the President: ^ 

The Secretary of State, to whom has been referred a resohition 
of the House of Representatives of the 2Tth February hist, requesting 
the President to inform that House " whether an}^ answer has been 
received from our Minister in Spain on the subject of the application 
made to that Government to obtain a copy of the report of the com- 
missioners for running and marking the line between Florida and 
the United States, under the provisions of the treaty of 1705; and to 
comnuniicate any information recently received at the Department of 
State on that subject;'" has the honor to state, that it does not ap- 
pear, from the files of this office, that the application made in May, 
1828, by the ]Minister of the United States at ^Madrid, in pursuance 
of instructions from this department, for the document referred to, 
has been answered by the Spanish Government. 

The only information recently received at this office on the sub- 
ject embraced by the above resolution, is contained in a letter from 
Albert Gallatin, dated the 18th February, 1830, and in a document 
accompanying the same, purporting to be a series of '" observations 
to accompany the map of ])art of the Mississippi river, the southern 
boundary of the United States, and the coast of Florida," copies of 
which are, herewith, respectfull}' submitted. 

M. VAN BUREN. 



New York, Fehrvary 18. 1830. 

Sir: Mr. White, delegate from Florida, informed me, whilst at 
"Washington, that it appeared, from a correspondence of Mr. Madi- 
son with the late Andrew Ellicott, commissioner of the United States 
for ascertaining the boundary between the said States and the then 
Spanish provinces of East and "West Florida; that the official map 
and report of the proceedings of the commissioners had been lent by 
the State to the Treasury Department. 

This nuist have taken place whilst I was Secretary of the Treasury; 
and, as the map could have been wanted there for no other purpose 
than as affording the proper basis of the surveys of the public lands 
in that quarter, an inquiry was instituted at the General I^and Oflice; 
the result of which, as I am informed, was, that Mr. King, the old 
and principal draughtsman of the office, had a perfect recollection 
of the map being deiDosited there; that Mr. Freeman, principal sur- 
veyor of the lands south of Tennessee, had taken a copy of the whole 
or part of it; that it was not returned to the Department of State; 
and that, whilst Mr. Tiffin was Commissioner of the Land Office, it 
was, by his direction, lent to a committee of Congress, which had 
api^lied for it, and had not been returned. But there was no recol- 
lection of the " report of the proceedings of the counnissioners," if 
distin(;t from the map: and, when I left "Washington, no such docu- 
ment had been found in the Land Office. 

Mr. Pvllicott had given me, at the time when published, a printed 
copy of his " astronomical and thermometrical observations on the 
boundary line," with some corrections in his hand writing. They 
were published at l^hiladelphia, for T. Dobson, 1801, are also inserted 



[Doc. No. 43.] 107 

in the 5th volume of the transactions of the American Philosoi)hical 
Society, and are, I presume, well known to you, and to Mr. White. 
But I had some recollection of another manuscript by Mr. Ellicott, 
on the same subject, being in my po<^session. and made lately a search, 
hoping it might prove the lost report. I have found, and have the 
honor to enclose the said manuscript, which proves to be, as stated 
by himself, " Mr. Ellicott 's ^observations to ac(;ompany the map,'" &c. 
I had (from the endorsement "for Mr. Gallatin," and having for- 
gotten how it came in my possession) believed that it was my private 
property, and had been given to me, with his printed work, by Mr. 
Ellicott; which will account for its having remained so long in my 
library. But the designation *" to accompany the map,'' leaves no 
doubt on my mind that it was originally transmitted with the map 
to the Department of State, by Mr. Ellicott, and sent, also, after- 
wards, with the map, when this was lent to the Treasury. The words 
" for Mr. Gallatin " were probably written, on sending it back to me, 
by some person (perhaps Mr. Randolph) to whom I had lent it. 

If I understand the question, on which a doubt has lately arisen, 
between the State of Georgia and the United States, this manuscript 
contains but little that can elucidate it. Yet what is stated (page 20) 
concerning the true St. Mary's, '* which is formed by the water drain- 
ing out of the Okefenoke swamp, corroborates Mr. Ellicott's state- 
ments in his printed " astronomical and thermometrical observa- 
tions," above alluded to. 

It appears from these, that the commissioners surveyed the bound- 
ary line along the 31st parallel of latitude, from the Mississippi to the 
Chattahoochie river, and down this river to the mouth of Flint river, 
which last point they ascertained to be in 30° 42' 42" north latitude, 
and 5 hours 39' 33" in time west longitude from Greenwich: that 
they did not survey the line from the mouth of Flint river, to the 
soui'ce of the St. Mary's; that they proceeded to the mouth of the last 
mentioned river, ascended it as high as it was navigable for canoes, 
whei'e they established an observatory, (A) the latitude of which 
they ascertained to be in 30° 21' 39", and set there a hewn post, sur- 
rounded by a large mound of earth; that they ran thence a traverse 
to a point (4,403.2 perches north, and 886.4 perches west from the 
point A,) where another post was set up, surrounded . by another 
mound of earth. (B) thrown up on the margin of the Okefenoke 
swamp, and as near to it as any permanent mark could be placed, on 
account of the water ; that the river St. Mary's is formed by the water 
draining out of the said SAvamp: and that, as no specific point could 
be fixed in the swamp, as the source of the river, " it loas therefore 
af/reed that the termination of the line, supposed to be drawn 
north 4.5° east 640 perches from the mound B, should be taken 
as a point to, or near wdiich a line should be drawn from the mouth of 
Flint river; which line, when drawn, should be final, and considered 
as the permanent boundarv between the Ignited States and his 
Catholic Majesty, &c."' 

I have inserted the preceding paragraph, to save you the trouble 
of referrinc" to the several parts there quoted of the printed obser- 
vations. There can thence be wo doubt as to the fact, that a certain 
spot was agreed to, in pursuance of the treaty by the joi' t commis- 
sioners, as the source of the St. ^Mary's. But it is probable that tlie 

4.S064— S. Doc. 4G7. GO-1 10 



108 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

authentic evidence of ihat fact is lost; that the map was burnt in 
the Capitol in September, [August,] 1S14; and that this map, cer- 
tified by the commissioners, was in fact, the only official report of 
their joint proceedings made to the Departme.t of State. Under 
those circumstances, the manuscript observations of Mr. Ellicott 
may be of some use not only as corroborating the fact, that the river 
which issues from the Okefenoke swamp, was agreed on by the com- 
missioners as being the true St. Mary, but also as a document trans- 
mitted by Mr. Ellicott to the Department of State, with the map, 
and referring to it. It also mentions a Ijranch coming from the 
west, betAveen the encampment A. and the point B, which branch, 
therefore, is not the true St. Mary's of the commissioners; aid it des- 
ignates the situation of the Okefenoke swam}), by stating that the 
river St. Juans, which falls into the (htlf of ^lexico, has also its 
source in that swamp. 

On reflection, I also enclose my copy of the printed observations, 
which is of 1:0 use to me, and which is not, perhaps, in the collection 
of books of the department. But it must be observed, that the plates 
referred to in the text, are, all but one, wanting in that copy. It 
is probable that they were inserted in the 5th volume of the trans- 
actions of the American Philosophical Society; and one of them, 
(plate 8) mentioned page l;iO. and purporting to show tlie traverj^e 
from the point A to point B. would greath" assist in finding, on the 
ground, the true position of those points, and therefore of the source 
of the St. Mary's, as agreed on by the commissioners. 

I Avrite to Mr. White, letting him k ow that I have transmitted 
Mr. Ellicott "s manuscript observations to you. and referring him 
to this letter for further information. 
I have the honor to be. 

Very respectful h', sir. 

Your most obedient servant. 

ALBEET GALL AT IX. 

The Hon. :M. Van Buren. Sicretary of Statt. 



The following observations, to accompaiiy the map of jjart of the 
Mississippi river, the southern boundary of the United States, and 
the coast of West Florida, being hastily thrown together from my 
notes, are only intended to convey a general idea of the com. try to 
which they refer. 

ANDREW ELLICOTT. 

OF tup: MISSISSIPPI. 

To say anything new respecting this river, whose magnitude and 
importance have, many years ago, employed the pei s of some of the 
historians, jihilosophers, and geographers of most nations in Europe, 
as well as in our own country, is not to be expected from me. In 
following such character-. T shall proceed with diffidence, ai:d con- 
fine myself to that part of this celebrated river, which I had an 
opportunity of examining myself, and which lies between the mouth 
of the Ohio, and the southern boundary of the United States. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 109 

The confluence of the Ohio a!;d Mississippi rivers, is in 37° 0' 23' 
north latitude, and about oh. 55' 23" west from the royal observatory 
at Greenwich. I am Avell aware that this longitude is considerably 
less than has generally been assigned to this important geographical 
point; and have rot adopted the alteration without some hesitation, 
and should still have been more cautious if I could have found any 
other authority in favor of the former position, than charts unac- 
companied by any observations. The observations from which I 
have deduced both the latitude and longitude, were made under un- 
favorable circumstances; the weather was intensely cold, and we 
had not sufficient covering for ourselves and instruments; but, upon 
repeatedly examining them, I am not se: sible of their being liable 
to any material objection. 

Those Avho are descending the Ohio and Mississippi, and have 
been pleased with the prospect of large rivers rushing together 
among hills and mountains, will anticipate the pleasure of viewing 
the conflux of those gigantic waters. But their expectations will not 
be realised — the prospect is neither grand nor romantic; here are 
no hills to variegate the scene; nor mountains from wdiose summits 
the meandering of the rivers may be traced; nor chasms through 
which they have forced their way. The prospect is no more than 
the meeting of waters of the same width, along the sounds on our 
low southern coast. These great rivers,* after draining a vast extent 
of mountainous and hilly country, join their waters in the swamj^, 
through which the Mississippi passes into the Gulf of Mexico. This 
swamp extends from the high lands in the United States, to the high 
lands i'l Louisiana, and, through various parts of it, the river has, 
at different periods, had its course. From the best information I 
could obtain, the swamp is from 36 to 45 miles wide from the bound- 
ary many miles up, and much the greater part of it lies on the west 
side of the present bed of the river. From the mouth of the Ohio 
to the southern boundary of the United States, the Mississippi 
touches but tAvo or three places on the west side that are not annually 
inundated, and even those are for a time insulated, but, on the east 
side, it washes the high land in eleven places. 

The swamp appears to be composed of the uuid and sand carried 
by Mad river into the Missouri, and by the Missouri into the Mis- 
sissippi, to which may be added the washi]\g of the country drained 
bv the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, Avith their numerous branches, 
which furnish a fresh stratum ever}' inundation. This stratum is 
deposited upon a stratum of leaves and other dead vegetables, which 
had fallen the preceding autumn. These strata may be readilj' ex- 
amined in many parts of the swamp, and the banks of the river. 
The depths of the deposited strata differ considerably, and princi- 
pally depend upon the duration of the different inm.dations. In 
1797 the inundation was complete by the last of February, and the 
river was not entirely within its banks till about the beginning of 
September; but, in 1798, the inundation was not complete till after 
the middle of May, and the river was generally within its banks by 
the first of August. The mea'i perjoendicular height to which the 
river rises above the low water mark at the town of Natchez, is 55 
feet. 

In descending the river, j^ou meet with but little varietj^; a few 
of the bends and islands will give you a sample of the whole. If 



110 



[Doc. No. 43.] 



the water is low. you have high muddy banks, quicksands, and sand 
bars. and. if fulL you might ahnost as well be at sea : for, days to- 
gether, you will float without meeting with any land to set' your 
feet on. and. at the same tiuie. environed by an uninhabitable 
wilderness. 

This ri\er. like all others passing through flat countries, and not 
checked or confined by hills or mountains, is very crooked, as may be 
seen by the chart. This arises from a very natural cause, and may 
be explained in the following manner: Suppose, in the figure, lines 
a h and c d to be the banks or margins of a portion of a river, and 
the water moving in tlie direction .:' f. but meetiuL^ with an 



a e c 




h d 



obstruction at /. it will be reflected in the direction / ^, and at </, as 
well as at /. the bank will be worn away: about h an eddy will be 
formed, where sand, earth, and rul)bisli Avill be deposited, and con- 
tinually increase the convex j^art. while the concave parts will be 
worn awa5\ and in time a \oo\^ will be formed something like the 
dotted curve line in the figure, which Avill increase in magnitude till 
the river, aided by an inundation, breaks through a shorter way, and 
the convex part will become an island. If the loop has been very 
large, and the water ceases to have much current along it, the two 
ends in a short time will be fdled up by the great quantity of mud 
and sand which are constantly mixed with the water of the Missis- 
sippi, and a lake will be formed. These lakes are to l)e met Avith in 
various parts of the swamp, and bear evident marks of liaving been, at 
some former period, portions of the main bed of the river. 

In consequence of the great body of Avater in the IVlississippi, and 
the light and loose nature of the soil, the concave banks of the river 
are falling in more or less during every general fall or rise of the 
water: and I believe but few people have ever descended it in either 
of those states who have not heard or seen large portions of the banks 
giA'e Avay. Avhich are instantly carried off l)v the current, and the 
earth, sand, and some of the rubbish, again deposited at the couA-ex 
points below. 

From Avhat has been said, one general caution must necessarily 
present itself to those concerned in navigating tlie Mississippi, which 
is. to avoid fhr concave banks. Many fatal accidents haA'C hap- 



[Doc. No. 43.] Ill 

pened on this river, either through ignorance of the danger or inat- 
tention in coming to at improper phices on the shore to cook, procure 
fuel, or for other purposes. We have a late instance of a Mr. Mc- 
Farling, and part of his crew, being lost by the falling of a bank. 
When the banks are inundated they are less dangerous, being in some 
measure supported by the water, and not so liable to give way; but 
the concave shores are still to be avoided, because the water near the 
bank, and elevated above it, not being confined to the course of the 
river by the lower current, rushes straight forward among the cane 
and timber, and if Kentucky boats (as they are called) fall within 
the draught of this upper current, it will be extremely difficult to re- 
lieve them, or prevent their being lost in the woods. Many losses 
have been sustained from this cause. 

A boat may at all times come to with safet}'^ at a sand bar. the 
upper or lower end of an island where young bushes are growing, or 
just at the beginning of an eddy, below any of the points that are 
covered with young cotton wood, (a species of poplar) or willows, 
(salix nigra.) From the mouth of the Ohio down to the Walnut 
hills, it is not safe to descend the river in the night, unless the boat 
be uncommonly strong, on account of the sawyers and planters. The 
former are trees slightly confined to the bottom hj some of their 
roots, or limbs, and the loose or floating ends continue a vibratory 
motion, generally up and down. Some of them rise five or six feet 
above the water every vibration. The latter are more danoerous, 
being firmly fixed or planted in the bottom; they are all easily 
avoided in daylight. With these precautions, the Mississippi may 
be navigated with as much, if not more safety, than any other river 
upon this continent. 

I shall now proceed to give some account of the construction of the 
map of the river. A continued and correct survey of the Mississippi 
will scarcely ever be obtained, on account of the swam]:)S, la<roons, 
thickets, and cane brakes on its banks, and below the banks the im- 
pediments will be equally great. In some places impassable quick- 
sands will be met with, in others the water will be found washing 
the high and almost perpendicular banks, and no place left for a foot 
hold. Some otiier mode different from the common method of sur- 
veying must therefore be resorted to. The following was used in 
constructing the map to which this refers : The mouth of the Ohio 
was taken as a given point, both as to latitude and longitude. An ex- 
cellent surveying comjiass, corrected for the variation of the needle, 
was used in taking the courses, Avhich were entered in time, instead 
of s|^ace. Every dav when the sun shone, at noon, his meridional 
altitude Avas taken from the artificial or reflected horizon, with an 
excellent sextant, made by Eamsden. and graduated by the vernier 
to twenty seconds; and was generally found, by a great number of 
o]-»servations, to determine the latitude true within less than a minute. 
The latitudes determined by those observations are entered on the 
river at the places where the observations were made. All the courses 
between each two of those points, were protracted in time, instead of 
space, tliat is, by calling the time space. Each set of courses were 
then expanded, or contracted, so as to agree with the points of lati- 
tude to which they belonged : and from the number of latitudes taken. 
I expect that no pnvt of the ri\-er will be found verv erroneous in that 



112 [Doc. Xo. 43.] 

respect : so much cannot be said in favor of the longitude, except at 
the mouth of the Ohio, and the town of Natchez, which are consid- 
ered as given points: the latitude and longitude of the latter being 
determined with as much precision as that of any other point Avithin 
the United States. 

From the banks of the river constantly giving wa}', no niap, or 
chart of it, can be expected to be tolerably correct for more tlinji a 
century, if so much. 

OF THE PEARL OR HALF WAY RIVER. 

The Pearl or Half AVay River is navigable for small craft many 
miles Xorth of the boundary. It is remarkably crooked, and full of 
logs and lodged trees, which are at present ver}' injurious to its nav- 
igation. Its banks, for some distance above the boundary, and almost 
the whole of them below, are annually inundated. The banks, with 
a considerable extent of country, become verj^ low, below the Indian 
house (marked on the map) over the Avhole of which the water passes 
when the river is high, and here it begins to divide into a number of 
branches; some of them maintain an open channel till thej'^ unite 
again with the main branch, and others are lost in (he sAvamp. Those 
branches appear so nearly of the same size, that a person not ac- 
quainted Avith the river, Avill be as likely to take a wrong, as a right 
one. This happened to several of our parties, and to myself, 
although I had two jDersons, Avith me, who had been up and doAvn 
twice before: Ave were a part of tAvo days, and one night, before we 
got back to the place Avhere we made the mistake. The officer of my 
escort, Avith several of his men, were still more unfortunate: they 
took another branch, and Avere a greater length of time before they 
discoA^ered their error, and on half alloAvance of provision. 

In con>-e(iue]icc of the Avater extending over such a considerable 
space, it never acquires a sufficient head to force aAvay tlie lodged tim- 
ber Avhich in tAvo ]:)laces extend across the river. The upper raft is 
of considerable magnitude, coA^red Avith grass and other herbage, 
with some bushes. Through those rafts Ave had to make channels by 
removing and cutting aAvay the logs till Ave had a sufficient depth of 
Avater to float our loaded canoes and pei'ogues. It was an arduous 
undertaking, and executed at the most unfavorable season in the year. 

Nearly the Avhole t)f the ])rovision made use of at our station up 
the river by both parties, including the military escorts, and for ex- 
tending the line East to the Mobile, Avas taken from Ncav Orleans 
through the Avest end of Lake Pontchartrain, thence up the riA'er to 
the l)oundary. 

The tide ebbs and flows a few miles above latitude 30° 21' 30", 
where there was formerly a trading house, and to Avhere any A'essel 
that can cross the bar into the lake may ascend with ease. The banks 
of the river aboAe the old trading house, as far ns the tide is percep- 
tible, are too Ioav and marshy for a settlement. The riA^er has several 
conununications Avith the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Pontchartrain, 
but they are all too shoal for vessels draAving more than scA'en or 
eight feet Avater, and therefore only fit for the coasting trade. 

The coasting vessels which visit Ncav Orleans, pass by the mouth 
of the riA'er into Lake Pontchartrain, thence up the bayou St. John's 
to the canal executed by the Baron de Carondelet, which terminates 



[Doc. No. 43.] 113 

at the walls of the city iiniiiediately behind the hospital. This canal 
requires cleaning- every year, and is done by slaves and criminals con- 
demned to hard labor, but mig'ht be done more effectually by convey- 
ing a stream of water into it from the Mississippi at the time of the 
annual inundation, which might be effected with but little trouble 
and expense. 

Lake Pontchartrain is a beautiful sheet of Avater, but unfortunately 
surrounded by marshes, and the landing in many places is attended 
^■ith difficulty on account of the mud. There are some places towards 
the east end where the beach is beautiful, being formed by large 
bodies of cockle shells, from which all the lime used at New Orleans 
md about the lake is made. 

OF THE PASCAGOULA. 

The Pascagoula is a large river, and navigable for small ci-fift, a 
considerable distance above the boundary, and fi'om the report of 
some of my j^eople who descended it. it is very deep, and falls with 
some other smaller waters into a bay opposite the Horn Island. The 
bay and mouth of the river, on account of shoals and oyster banks, 
appear only adapted to the coasting trade. 

OF THE MOBILE. 

The Mobile is a fine large river, and navigable some distance above 
the boundary for any vessel that can cross the bar into the bay. One 
square rigged A^essel has been as hifi-h as fort St. Stephen's, in latitude 
31° 33' 34"''. 

When the river is low. the tide ebbs and flows se^'eral miles above 
the line, and is sometimes observed as high as fort St. Stephen's; but 
when the river is full, there is but little, if any, tide above the town 
of Mobile. It was in the latter state wdien I ascended it ; and not- 
withstanding the current being constantly agamst us, and but little 
fair wdnd, w^e reached the place of our encampment north of the 
boundary in four days : my vessel was about 40 tons bnrden. 

About six miles north of the boundary, the Tombeckbee and Ala- 
bama rivers unite, and after accompanying each other more than 
three miles, separate : the western branch from thence down to the 
bay is called Mobile. The Alabama retains its name till it joins 
some of its own waters, which had been separated from it for several 
miles, and then takes the name of Tensaw. which it retains till it falls 
into the head of the bay. 

The easiest way from the Gulf of Mexico by water into the United 
States, is up those rivers, the navigation of each being equally good. 

The u])land cm those rivers is of an inferior quality, from their 
mouths up to the latitride of fort St. Stephen's, and produces little 
besides iiitch. ]iine and wire grass; but is said to become better as you 
ascend the rivers. 

The lands on those rivers have, notwithstanding, had a good char- 
acter for fertility; but this has arisen from not discriminating be- 
tween the upland which is unfit for cultivation, and the banks of the 
rivers, which are fertile in the extreme, and to which agriculture is 
almost wholly confined for a number of miles above the boundary. 
But those lands are subject to a great inconvenience from the inun- 
dations of the rivers. 



114 [Doc. No. 43.] 

Planting is not attempted in the spring till the waters have sub- 
sided, and it sometimes happens that inundations follow the first fall 
of the waters in the sj^rino-, and wholly destroy the previous labors 
of the ])lanters. This was the case in May, 1700. after the corn was 
two feet hiirh : but this inconvenience is l)y no means so irreat as it 
Avould be in more northerly latitude: there still remains summer 
sufficient to bring a crop of corn to full maturity. 

The large swamj) through Avhich the rivers meander, is intersected 
in almost all directions by smaller water courses, which keep up a 
constant connexion between the main branches — such of them as were 
used by our people in passing and re-passing from one side 1o the 
other. 

At the mouth of the INIobile river stands the town of that name. 
The situation is handsome, and some of the houses tolerably good, 
and for a place of its size, the trade is considerable, j'he place is 
said to be unhealthy during the months of July. Auiiust. September, 
and October. 

The f(^rt stands a short distance below the toAvn: it is a mcII built, 
regular Avork. and was taken from th.e British by Don Gnlve/,, during 
our revolutionaiy war. Since that time it has been re]iaired. and 
put in a good <tate of defence, by the officers of his Catholic Majesty. 

From the traverse of the river, the latitude of the town appears to 
be about 30° 30' 30" X. and the longitude 5h. 52' IT" west from the 
royal observatory at Greenwich. 

The bay is extensive, and supposed to be about 9 leagues in length; 
but too shoal for large shipping. The latitude of the bar at the en- 
trance into the bay from the Gulf of Mexico. I found by a mean of 
two good observations, to be about 30"^ 12' 30" N. and as the course 
of the bay is nearly north and south, the longitude must be nearly 
the same as that of the town. 

OF THE COXECUH. 

The Conecuh has generally, though erroneously, been called the 
Scambia and Escambia, which is a name of a much smaller stream, 
that falls into it from the west, and unites a short distance above 
where the transit of Mercury was observed in the year 1799. 

The banks of the Conecuh, during a large portion of the spring, are 
inundated for many miles above the line down to Pensacola bay. with 
very few exceptions. The upland is poor as far up the river as we 
saw it, but it was said to be tolerably good about the head branches. 

The river is navigable for small craft a considerable distance above 
the boundary. All our tents, stores, instruments, &c. were taken. up 
to our camp by water. The tide ebbs and flows but a few miles up 
the river. 

The Conecuh falls into the head of Pensacola bay. which is a beau- 
tiful body of water, well stored with a variety of fine fish. cral>s and 
oysters, and is justly considered one of the l)est harbors on the whole 
coast : vessels drawing not more than twenty-one feet water may cross 
the bar at all times with safety. 

The town of Pensacola stands on the west side of the bay; the situa- 
tion is delightful, and the place remarkably healthy; l)ut the water 
is shoal in front of the town. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 115 

Pensacola was the capital of West Florida while that province was 
in the possession of his Britannic Majesty; at that time it made a 
very respectable appearance; but, since the conquest of that colony 
by the Spaniards, under Don Galvez, it has been on the decline. 

The old fortifications stood on some sand hills back of the town, and 
too distant to yield it any substantial protection; notwithstanding 
this circumstance, the Spaniards never once attempted to molest the 
inhabitants, or to injure the town during the siege of the forts, which 
lasted two months. The garrison made a gallant defence, and the sur- 
render was hastened Ij}" one of the magazines accidentl}^ blowing up. 
During the w4iole siege, as well as after the surrender, Don Galvez 
conducted himself both as a man of courage and humanity. ]Mr. 
Bowles, (commonly called General Bowles.) Mr. Philip Key, of the 
State of Maryland, and several other Americans of distinction, were 
at that time officers under General Campbell, who commanded the 
troops of his Britannic Majesty. 

The trade of Pensacola is at this time principally carried on b}' the 
House of Panton. Leslie, Forbes, and Company. The latitude of the 
town is 30° 2;V 43" X. and the longitude, by our measurement from 
the Mississippi, and traverse of the Conecuh river, is about 87° 14' 
15" west from Greenwich. But, from the observations of Sir John 
Lindsay and Doctor Lorimer, 87° 40' ; it may lie between the two, but 
I suspect much nearer the former. The latitude of the bar, at the 
entrance into the bay, is about 30° 18' N. and the longitude, from our 
measurement and traverse, 87° 17' west from Greenwich. The harbor, 
as well as all the others east of the Mississippi, is rendered much less 
valuable on account of the worms. They are so numerous in this bay. 
that a vessel's bottom has been known to be ruined in two months; 
and it is absolutely necessary for all vessels not copper-bottomed, 
lying in the harbor, to be hove down, cleaned, and payed, every five 
or six weeks. 

The entrance into the bay is defended by a small fort on th(> west 
end of St. Rose's Island, and a battery on the main land nearly (oppo- 
site to it. 

OF THE CHATTAHOOCHIE OR APALACHICOLA. 

This is a fine large river, and navigable for boats and galleys that 
use oars a considerable distance north of the boundary. A sloop in the 
service of his Catholic Majesty's commissioner, and a small schooner in 
our employ, ascended up to the mouth of Flint river, which falls into 
the Chattahoochie about twenty-one miles below the parallel of 31°; 
but this was attended Avith some difficulty. The LTnited States' 
Schooner Sally ascended about thirty miles, but 'for want of oars pro- 
ceeded no higher. From the mouth of the river up, for the distance of 
at least forty miles, the banks are very low, and, with the exception of 
a few places, inundated whenever the water is moderately high. But. 
as you ascend, the banks become more elevated, and some of them, 
which may be called bottom land, are seldom overflown. These are 
remarkably rich, and extremely fertile; and are almost the only lands 
under cultivation by the Indians who reside on the river. 

A few miles below the mouth of Flint river, lime-stone begins to 
make its appearance, and extends far up into the country ; it is open 
and porous, and of a dirty blueish color. On the east side of the 



116 [Doc. No. 43.] 

mouth of Flint river, and for a considerable distance up it. large 
quantities of iron ore may be seen. 

The upland on the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers, from the bound- 
ary southward, is of an inferior quality, though much better than 
on some of the waters already mentioned. 

The Chattahoochie empties itself into St. George's sound by three 
mouths. The most eastern one is at present only navigable for canoes 
and small boats, on account of the lodged timber and rafts. Our 
vessels ascended the most westerly one, which is at this time the main 
channel; but the navigation of this is troublesome for those not ac- 
quainted with it'; not on account of logs and such impediments. l3ut 
from its connexion with lakes and swamps by branches apparently 
larger than itself. ^Xe took two of them coming in from the west- 
ward : the first led us into a lake about three leagues in length, and a 
half in width; the other, a few miles from the main branch, was 
divided in such a manner into smaller ones that we soon discovered 
our mistake. The latitude of the mouth of the western branch is 
about 29° 42' N. and the longitude, by a lunar observation, oh. 39' 
23" west from the royal observatory at Greenwich. 

St. George's sound is principally formed by three islands; between 
the most westerly one and the main land the channel is narrow and 
shoal, and only fit for canoes; betAveen this island and St. George's, 
which gives the name to the sound, is a bar on which some bushes 
are growing. The coasting vessels pass between those islands. St, 
George's island is supposed to be about six leagues in length, but in 
no place more than one wide. The distance from St. George's island 
across the sound is from one to two and a half leagues. The next 
island is not laid down in any of our charts ; it is about two leagues 
in length, and two miles east of St. George's island. The nuiin chan- 
nel into the sound is near the west end of this island. From this 
island to the next (which at low water sometimes joins the main land) 
it is too shoal for any other than coasting vessels. 

The latitude of the east end of St. George's inland is 29'' 44' 38" X. 
and the longitude (by taking the result of tlu' lunar observation be- 
fore mentioned, as a correct point) 5h, 38' 35" west from Greenwich. 
The sound is so full of oyster bank*-' and shoal-:, that it is difficult to 
navigate it without a pilot. 

The coast on the north side of the sound is intersected and cut to 
pieces by such a variety of water courses, several of which have evi- 
dently, at SOUK' former period, been mouths of the river, that it is 
extrelnely difficult to find the true branches: we were constantly em- 
ployed five or six days in discovering theui. 

or TIM-: ST. .MAHv's Kivr.i;. 

The river St. Clary's is a part of the southeru boundary of the 
United States, ft is navigable for top-sail vessels at all times, up 
to Tradei-'s Tlill. ::nd from thence up. for snuill boats and canoes, 
almost to the Okefenoke swamp, when the water i^ uiodei'ately high, 
were it not for logs, drift Avood. and rafts, which in many places 
extend acro-;s the stream. A huge branch couies in froui the west 
above our encampment, which is noted on the map : it is but little 
inferior to the one considered as the true St. Mary'>. which is formed 
bv the water drniuing out of the Okefenoke swamp. The swamp is 



[Doc. No. 43.] 117 

very laroe. though much loss than has been generally supposed, and 
furnished subjects for a number of fabulous stories. The swamp 
is watered by a vast number of small streams and drains, which gen- 
erally rise within its vicinity. The river St. Juans,* which falls 
into the Gulf of Mexico, as well as the St. Mary's, has its source in 
this swamp. 

A large portion of the banks on both sides of the St. Mary's are 
annually inundated. The upland is generally of an inferior quality, 
producing little besides wire grass and pitch-i:)ine. 

A NOTE RESPECTING WEST FEORIDA. 

The upland in "West Florida, as it is now^ bounded, is generally of a 
very inferior quality, except on the Mississippi, and is of but little 
value for either planting or farming. The river bottoms are all fer- 
tile, but too inconsiderable as to quantity, or too low and marshy, to 
give much value to the province. 

It may be observed that no restrictions in this country have been 
found so effective, as to prevent settlements being made where the 
land has been good ; a conclusion may therefore be fairly drawn, that 
this province, which has been aidect by France. Great Britain, and 
Spain, each in her turn, and yet remain unsettled, must be materially 
defective in point of soil. 

Tt is true, that the towns of JNIobile and Pensacola have been flour- 
ishing places ; but this was owing to causes not immediately dependent 
upon the soil. The latter was the seat of Government while the prov- 
ince was held by Great Britain, and from the excellence of the harbor, 
it w^as much frequented by the shipping of that nation, and both 
places well situated for carrying on the Indian trade, which was at 
that time very great; but that trade having greatly declined, and but 
little other for want of inhabitants, and the necessary article'^ for 
exportation, those towns have declined also. Mobile is beginning to 
recover, but this is owing to the settlements forming north of the 
boundary, on the Tombeckbee and Alabama rivers. Notwithstanding 
the favorable situation of those towns, they can never be of much 
consequence, but from the settlement of the country north of the 
boundary, which has greatly the advantage in point of soil and 
climate. 

Although West Florida is of but little importance when considered 
alone, and unconnected with the country north of it, it is of immense 
consequence when viewed as possessing all the avenues of commerce 
to, and from, a large productive coinitrv — a country extending north 
from the 31st degree of north latitude, to the source*^ of the Pearl, 
Pascagoula. Mobile. Alabania. Conecuh. Chattahoochie, and Flint 
rivers, and at least 300 miles from east to Avest. The coast of thi- 
province furnishes live oak and cedar, in considerable abundance, 
fit for ship building, which is not to be met with in any quantity, 
north of the boundary. 

From the safety of the coast of this proAunce. added to the great 
number of harbors proper for coasting A^essels. (that of Pensacola 
into which a fleet may sail and ride with safety, and that of St. 
Joseph's, into which A'essels. not draAving more than 17 feet Avater. 

♦Another of the same name falls into the Atlantic between the St. Mary's and 
Augustine. 



118 [Doc. No. 43.] 

may sail at all times.) it must be considered important in a commer- 
cial point of view: and if connected with the country north of it. be 
capable of pi-escribing maritime regulations to the Gulf of Mexico. 

In a political point of view. West P^lorida may be viewed as an 
object of the greatest importance to the United States; because that 
nation which holds the avenues to commerce, may give a tone to the 
political measures of another, unfriendly both to liberty and happi- 
ness. 

OF EAST FLORIDA. 

East Florida is but little better than a wilderness: the soil is not 
superior to that of West Florida : and none of its navigable waters 
rising in the United States, it does not appear equally interesting; 
it is, nevertheless, of considerable importance, having two remark- 
ably fine harbors on the west side, opening to the Gulf of Mexico, 
viz : Hillsborough bay and Charlotte harbor. The first is very capa- 
cious, and will admit, with safety, any vessel drawing not more than 
23 or 21 feet water: the latter is a good harbor, liut will not admit 
vessels drawing more than 15 or 10 feet Avater. 

The first I^nglishman who explored Hillsborough bay, was a Capt. 
Braddock. \fho commanded a i^rivateer from Virginia, and cruised 
on the west coast of P2ast Florida, in the years 1714 and 1715. 

East Florida must derive its principal importance from its jjrox- 
imity to the West India Islands, and the great number of harbors, 
and fit stations for cruisers, which it furnishes among the small 
islands, and in the reef, on the edge of the Gulf stream, which is the 
outlet to the Gulf of Mexico. 

We have not one chart of the coast of East Florida, which can be 
depended upou for accuracy. A survey of the east side of it Avas 
submitted, by the British Government, to Mi'. John de I'rahm. and 
the west side to !Mr. Georoe Gauld : but the labors of those gentlemen 
have never been made public. 

OF POSITIONS FOR IMILITAKV WORKS NEAR THE P.Ol'NDARV. 

There are several places on the jMississippi. between the mouth of 
the Ohio and the southern boundary of the United States, that would 
answer veiy well for military establislnnents: but the best appear 
to be at the Chickasaw bluffs. Walnut hills, and Loftus's heights. 
The two latter appear to have the best connnand of the river. At one 
of the three bluffs, above the Chickasaw bluff's, (but I cannot recol- 
lect which,) a fort might be advantageously erected. Fort Prud- 
homme was built upon the middle one. 

It will be difficult to erect works on any part of the Mississippi, 
below the mouth of the Ohio, that will prevent the descent of troops. 
The rapidity of the water, and the width of the river, will enable a 
boat, with some exertion, to ]iass any of the forts with but little, if 
any damage: and there is no place where a cross fire could be brought 
to bear with uuich advantage. But tlie ascent of boats is so slow, 
that a few pieces of artillery, well directed and served, would stop 
the progress of any vessel used on the river. 

On the Pearl, or Half Way river, a very short distance above the 
boundary, is a commanding eminence, where a fort might be erected, 
that would easily prevent the ascent of such boats and pirogues, as 
would be proper for that navigation. 



[Doc. No. 43.] 119 

My knoAvlecl^e of the Pascagonla. is too limited to justify an opin- 
ion: but, from its distance both from the Pearl and Mobile rivers, 
and direct communication with the Gnlf of Mexico, added to its 
magnitude, I should suppose it worthy of as much, if not )nore atten- 
tion, than the Pearl river. 

The Mobile, Tombecbee, and Alabama rivers, are at this time of 
much more importance to the United States, than all the other waters 
between the Mississippi river and the Atlantic Ocean : being the only 
rivers which are navigable for square rigged vessels from the Gulf of 
Mexico, into that part of the ITnited States l3'ing on the north bound- 
ar}^ of West Florida. But. exclusive of this consideration, there is 
another, which arises from the lands on those rivers being already 
partially settled, and, at this time, the most valuable part of the 
Union. 

The position of fort Stoddard, on Ward's bluff, is a very proper 
one; but the works are neither sufficiently extensive nor strong to 
oppose an enemy possessed of artillery: and, ^o long as his Catholic 
Majesty holds West Florida, so long wnll it be necessary for the 
United States to be formidable in this quarter. 

Any works on the Conecuh will, for some time to come, be unneces- 
sary: there being no inhabitants to protect, nor a sufficient body of 
Indians residing on it, to make that trade worth attending to. About 
one mile and a half above the boundary, on the east side of the river, 
there is a place Avhere a trader formerly resided, that would answer 
tolerably well for a small military establishment. 

At the confluence of the Chattahoochie and Flint rivers, the lands 
are swampy, and annually inundated, and therefore unfit for mili- 
tary works: but there are several bluffs on the east side of the Chatta- 
hoochie, which begin about one mile and three-quarters above the 
mouth of Flint river, where works might be advantageously erected. 

On the St. Mary's river we have two military estal)lishments, one 
at Colerain, and the other at the mouth of the river on Point Petre. 
Neither of them ever have, or will be of any advantage, either in 
protecting our trade, or adding security to our citizens: they pos- 
sess neither advantage of situation, merit in design, nor strength in 
the execution. The situation selected by the very judicious General 
Oglethorpe, on the south end of Cumberland Island, where he erected 
Fort William, appears to be the most eligible, and better calculated 
for a permanent Avork, to give security to the harbor and sound, than 
any other position about St. Mary's. 

OF THE INOIGENOl'S PLANTS, SHRUBBY AND HERBACEOUS. 

Being a very indifferent botanist. I shall be extremely limited on 
this subject, and only note such productions as particularly attracted 
my attention for their use, quantity, beauty, or singularity. 

At the mouth of the Ohio, and doAvn the Mississippi swamp, the 
prevailing timber is cotton wood, (populus deltoida of Marshall.) 
black willow, (salix nigra.) black ash, (fraxinus nigra,) sugar maple, 
(acer saccarum.) — but this is not in great abundance, and becomes 
more scarce as you descend the river: and I do not recollect ever 
seeing but one tree south of the southern boundary — water maple, 
(acer negundo,) peccan, (juglans Illinoinensis. ) — this is met with as 
high as the Wabash, where it is scarce, but becomes more abundant 



120 [Doc. No. 43.] 

from thence down to the Gulf of Mexico — papaw, (aniiona trib- 
loba.) — ^I have eaten of the fruit in oreat perfection as earh' as the 
17th July, in the Mississippi Territory — button wood or sycamore, 
(j)hitanus occidentalism) hickory, (juglans hickory.) The c^'press 
(cupressus disticha.) begins to make its appearance about the 
Arkansas, and becomes very abundant a little further south, and 
appears to be inexhaustible before j^ou reach the 31st degree of north 
latitude. It occupies many parts of the swamp, almost to the exclu- 
sion of any other timber. The cj^press is a very useful wood, and 
used general]}^ in that countrj'^ for covering, flooring, and finishing 
the buildings. It grows in swamps, marshes, and ponds, but not on 
high land. The stem or bodj^ of the tree generally rises from the 
apex of a large conical base, above which the workmen have fre- 
<(uenlly to erect scaffolds before they fall tlie tree. From the roots 
of the tree, about this conical base, a number of conical excrescences 
are sent up. which are called cypress knees; some of them are eight 
or ten feet high, and. being hollow, are used for beehives and other 
purposes. The long moss (tillandsia asneoides) makes its appear- 
ance on the Mississippi nearly in tlie s;ame latitude with the cypress, 
and almost covers a number of trees before you reach the Walnut 
hills. Sweet ba}'. (laurus barl)onia) magnolia grandifiora. This 
most splendid and beautiful tree I do not recollect seeing almve the 
AValnut hills, but have no doubt of its growing unich further north. 
It is common through all the rich lands of Natchez, and east, to the 
Atlantic. The foregoing trees appear to be confined either to very 
wet or very rich land, and will be met with in all such places along 
the boundary and through West Florida, with the exception of the 
peccan. sugar maple, and one or two others. The katalpa (bign(mia 
katalpa) is not uncommon, but appeared the most abundant on the 
banks of the Conecuh. The nyssa a([uatica is common on the Chatta- 
hoochie, below the l)0undary. Exclusive of those plants, which are 
generall}^ confined to low or very rich grounds, the following will 
be met with in various parts of the country: Sassafras, (laurus sassa- 
fras,) which grows to a large size about the Natchez; sweet gum, 
(lequid amber;) common swamp ^gum, (nyssa integrifolia;) holly, 
(ilex opaca,) in great abundance in some parts of the Mississippi 
Territory, and frequently becomes a large tree: persimmon, (dio- 
spyros Virginiana.) very common; locust, (robina pseud-acacea;) 
honey locust, (gleditsia tiraconthus;) black walnut, (juglans nigra;) 
hickory, (juglans hickory.) of three species, connnon to the middle 
States; elm, (ulmus Americana;) dogwood, (cornus fiorida;) red 
bud, (cercis canadensis;) mulberry, (mortis rubra;) wild plum, 
(prunus Chickasaw;) tulip tree, (liriodendram tulipifera;) white 
oak, (quercus alba;) black oak, (quercus nigra;) swamp oak, 
(quercus aquatica;) chestnut oak, (quercus prinus,) with several 
other species or varieties; live oak, ((juercus sempervirens;) this 
very useful timber is much confined to the coast, and a short distance 
fi'Min it: I do not recollect seeing it. in any ([uantity, in AVest 
Florida, as far north as the boundary. Red cedar, (juniperus Vir- 
giniana:) this is likewise much confined to the coast, and is, in some 
places, in great abundance: pine (pinus) of several species, the 
quantity inexhaustible; buckeye, (desculus pa via;) wild cherry, 
(prunus Virginiana;) great palmetto, or cabbage-tree, (corypha, oi- 
palmetto of Walter:) cassina yai)on. (ilex vomitoria:) myraca inadora 



[Doc. Xo. 43.] 121 

of Bai'trani : from the berrv of this shrub the oreen wax used in 
candle making is collected: these two last are confined to the coast. 
Beech, (fagus ferraginea :) chesnut, (fagus Americana ;) chincopin, 
(fagus pumila;) spice wood, (laurus benzoin;) Bermudian nud- 
berry, (callicarpa Americana;) cane (arundo gigantea of Walter) 
extends through all parts of the Mississippi swamp, and occupies 
e(iiially the high as well as the low land, from the walnut hills, down 
the river, to Point Coui)ee. and, easterly, from 15 mile-: to more than 
20. The whole of that high, rich, hilly, and broken tract of country, 
except where the farms are opened, may be considered as one solid 
canebrake, and is almost impenetrable, but will probably l)e de- 
stroyed in a few years by tlie cattle, hogs, and fire-. Its general 
height is from 20 to 36 feet, but I have met with it on the tops of 
several hills 42 feet high. The small cane or reed (arundo tecta of 
Walter) begins to make its appearance on the boundary about 20 
miles east of the Mississippi river, and, with the arundo gigantea or 
large cane, will be found on all the creeks and river bottoms through 
to the Atlantic. The China root (smilax China) and passion flower 
(passiflora incarnata) are abundant in the rich grounds. The sensa- 
tive briar (mimosa instia) is common to the poor sandy land. Sev- 
eral species of that beautiful and singular plant, the caracinia, is 
frecpiently met with in the margins of swamps and low grounds; 
and three or four handsome species of maiiphcea are to be found in 
the ponds and still Avaters about the rivers. Along the water courses, 
and in the swamps, wdiere the land is good, several species of well 
tasted grapes are found in great plenty. Many of the trees in the 
swamps and low grounds are loaded with a variety of vines, the 
most conspicuous of which are the creeper or trumpet-flower (big- 
nonia radicans) and conunon poison vine (rhus radicans.) 



BOrXDAIiY— (GEORGIA AND FLORIDA. 

R(i<oJvtions of the Leghlature of Georgia on the syhject of the 
Florida Boundary: 

Ix Senate. 

The Committee on the state of the Republic, to whom Avas referred 
that part of the Governor's message which relates to the boundary 
line between the State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida, 
Avith the accompanying documents, have had the same under consid- 
eration, and report: 

That the deep interest which the State of Georgia has in the ques- 
tion of the final and satisfactory settlement of her boundaries, is such 
as to impose on her constituted authorities the duty of prosecuting 
the subject to some final termination: and at this time your committee 
belieA'e that the constituted authorities of this State Avould be liable to 
the charge of a dereliction of duty of her citizens, were they to permit 
the boundary Avhicli separates Georgia from the Territory of Florida, 
from the junction of the Flint and tlhattahoochie rivers, thence to the 
head of the St. Mary's river, to remain, as it now does, unascertained, 
and not run and marked. Your committee, in again presenting a 



122 [Doc. No. 43.] 

condensed view of the subject referred to their consideration, will 
purposely be ver}- brief, as the merits of the question have been so 
often presented to the PVderal Government, and particularly in the 
report and resolutions agreed to by the General Assembly of this 
State on the lOth day of December, 1828, which your committee beg 
may be referred to. as presenting most of the evidences on which 
Georgia claims a final settlement of tlie boundary line between fliis 
State and the Territory of Florida. 

By referring to the charter of Georgia, which was granted in the 
year 1782 to certain persons, and its surrender to the King of Great 
Britain is the year 1752, by the trustees; and the proclamation of 
17G8. estal)lishing the Government of East and West Florida, and ex- 
tending the southern boundary of Georgia, and the commission of 
Governor Wright, (at which time both Georgia and Florida were 
British colonies or provinces.) dated the 20th day of January. 1764; 
the onh' legitimate inference from each of tlie recited evidences is, 
that the southern line of Georgia was to run from the most southern 
^tream of a river St. Mary's, and Avestward from thence, and. con- 
sequently, leaving the whole of the head waters of that river within 
the boundar}^ of Georgia; and every other public document which 
relates to the said boundary, either as a boundary line of the United 
States or the State of Georgia, is in palpable accordance with this 
conclusion, until the j'ear 1800. 

In the year 171)5, the Government of the United States and Spain 
concluded a treaty, by the second article of Avhich it was agreed that 
a line should begin from a point at the junction of the Flint and 
Ghattahoochie rivers, and to run from thence to the head of the St. 
Mary's river. Under the provisions of the said treaty, commissioners 
were to be appointed to run and plainly mark said line, and commis- 
sioners were accordingly appointed: and in the j^ear 1800. Mr. Elli- 
cott. the commissioner on the part of the United States, and the com- 
missioner on the part of Spain, met. and attempted to run and mark 
the said line from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers 
to the head of the St. Clary's: but. from causes which it is now un- 
necessary to state in detail, the line was not run; but the commis- 
sioners fixed on a spot near a branch of the river St. Mary's, and 
erected a mound, and agreed that the mound so erected by them near 
the Okefenoke swamp should be taken as the true head of the St. 
Mary's river: and that a line should be run from the junction of the 
Flint and Chattahoochie rivers to said mound, and that it should be 
taken as the true line; provided, if said line did not pass within one 
mile north of said mound, it should be correct to carry it to that 
distance. 

Your committee, after having recited some of the evidences on 
which Georgia claims that the boundary line between this State and 
the Territorv of Florida has not been either finally or satisfactorily 
settled, take" leave to state, that, until the year 18i0, very little was 
known of the section of country about the head of the St. Mary's 
river: the Okefenoke swamp, in which it has its head, anterior to 
that tiuie. was almost an impenoti-able wilderness, and was very little 
known to civilized man; and that the" explorations made by the 
authority of the Legislature of this State, in the year 1818, Avere not 
intended to do more than to collect informati(m of a part of the lands 
and boundary line of Georgia; but, since that time, the Indian right 



[Doc. No. 43.] 12a 

of occnpancv has beeii extinguished to all of the lands in this State, 
from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers to the head 
of the St. Mary's river: and that section of this State is now generally 
settled, and the country generally known: it is therefore now believed 
that it will not be difficult or uncertain to ascertain the true head of 
the St. Mary's river. Yonr committee believe the Legislature will 
not discharge a duty it owes to the good citizens of this State, without 
once more asking and requesting the Federal Government to co- 
operate in this desirable object, and have the said line plainly run 
and marked. Your committee have too much confidence in the 
authorities of the General Government to indicate an opinion that the 
rights of Georgia are not attended to, from improper considerations. 

The reports made to Congress by the Judiciary Committee, to 
Avhom the subject has been referred — one on the 21st day of March, 
1828. and another on the 30th day of January. 1880. have been care- 
fully examined by your committee: but. as the said reports do not 
contain any new evidence of the claim on Avhich the United States 
claim that the mound erected by Mr. Ellicott to be trnl}- and care- 
fully placed at or near the head of the St. Mary's river, they have 
considered it improper at this time to make any examination of th0 
conclusions arrived at by the arguments relied on in said reports. 

In conclusion, your committee are satisfied that it is their duty to 
state that, if the question of settlement of boundary between Georgia 
and the Territory of Florida is not fully and finally settled under 
the provisions of the resolutions which are attached to this report, 
no further attempts should be made by this State, in the way now 
sought, to effect the desirable object : but that the question ought 
to be carried for decision before the proper judicial tribunal, and to 
effect the object embraced in this report, your committee recommend 
the adoption of the folloAving resolutions: 

Resolved, That it is the opinion of this Legislature that the divid- 
ing line between Georgia and Florida oug'ht to be run from the 
junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie rivers to the head of the 
iuost southern branch or head of St. Mary's river: and that the said 
line ought to be marked without further delay. 

Resolved, That Congress be earnestly requested, as an act of jus- 
tice, during its present session, to repeal, alter, or amend the act of 
the 14th of May, 1826, which provided for the running out and mark- 
ing the line dividing Georgia from the Territory of Florida : and to 
make additional and suitable provisions for the appointment of 
commissioners on the part of the L'nited States, to join comrnission- 
ers on the part of Georgia, to run out and plainly mark the dividing 
line between the State and the Territory of Florida, agreeably to the 
second article of the treaty of the 27th of October. 1795, between 
the United States and Spain. 

Resolved, That, should commissioners be appointed on the part 
of the United States, during the next session of Congress, to meet 
commissioners on the part of this State, to run out and mark the 
dividing line between Georgia and the Territory of Florida, that, 
as soon as his excellency the Governor shall or may be informed of 
the same, he be, and he is hereby empowered and requested to appoint, 
without delay, a competent commissioner, artist, or surveyor, on the 
part of this State, to meet the commissioner on the part of the United 

43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 11 



124 [Doc. No. 43.] 

States; and that he open a correspondence with said commissioner 
on the part of the United States, requesting a meeting of the com- 
missioners on the part of this State and the United States, at the 
earliest day convenient, for the purpose of discharging the duties 
assigned them with the least possible delay. 

Resolved. That if the commissioners on the part of the United 
States and Georgia shall meet agreeably to the provisions of the 
preceding resolution, and shall fail to effect the oljject of their ap- 
pointment, that it is desirable that they report, and reconuneuii terms 
and conditions on which the said disputed and unsettled line ought 
to be fully and finally settled. If, therefore, the Federal Govern- 
ment shall give authority to the commissioner appointed by said 
Government to make such recommendations to the said Government, 
that his excellency the Governor be and he is hereby, requested to 
give to the commissioner on the part of Georgia instructions to join 
in such recommendation, if they should agree that the same is just 
and proper. 

Resolved. That, should Congress, at its ensuing session, refuse or 
neglect to make provision for running out and plainly marking the 
said line, by the appointment of a commissioner to meet the com^ 
missioner who may be appointed on the part of Georgia, that his 
excellency the Governor be, and he is hereb}', authorized and re- 
quested, as soon aft^r the adjournment of the next session of Con- 
gress as may be consistent, to appoint two commissioners and an 
artist and surveyor, to meet as early after their appointment as may 
be convenient, and run out and plainly mark the said line dividing 
Georgia from the Territory of Florida, from the junction of the 
Flint and Chattahoochie rivers to the head of the St. Mary's river, 
agreeably to the second article of the treaty between the United 
States and Spain, of the 27th day of October, 1795; and ,that his 
excellency the Governor do, in such case, inform the President of 
the United States of the time at which the commissioners on the part 
of Georgia will proceed to run out and plainly mark said line. 

Resolved. That his excellency the Governor be requested to for- 
ward a copy of this report and resolutions to our Senators and 
l\ei)resentatives in Congress, to be by them laid before Congress early 
in the ensuing session with a request that they may use, in the most 
earnest manner, eveiy means in their power to get the Government 
of the United States to meet Georgia by commissioners, with full 
power and authority finally to settle this long standing and unpleas- 
ant controversy. 

Read and agreed to, November 19th. 1830. 

THOMAS STOCKS, President. 
Attest : John A. Cuthbert, Secretary. 

In the House of Representatives — Read and concurred in. 

ASBURY HULL, Speaker. 

Attest: Wm. C. Dawson, Clerk. 
Approved — 16th December. 1830. 

GEORGE R. GILMER, Governor. 



23d Congress, fDoC No 152 1 ^^- ^^ ^^^^s- 

1st Session. ^ '' - ' -j.j 



DIVIDING LINE— GEORGIA AND FLORIDA. 

[To accompany bill H. K. No. 270.] 



March 6, 1834. 

Read aud referred to the Gotumittee of the \\'hole House to which is committed 
the bill (H. R. No. 270) " supfdementary to the act entitled an aet to au- 
thorize the President of the United States to run and mark a line dividing 
the Territory of Florida from, the State of Georgia,'' passed ^lay 4, 1826. 



Extract from the annual message of the Governor of the State of 
Geoi'gia to the General Assenibly in the year 1831. 

" The CongTess of the United States having failed, at its last ses- 
sion, to accept the terms proposed by the Legislature for the ascer- 
tainment of the dividing line between this State and the Territory 
of Florida, I proceeded to cause that line to be run by two commis- 
sioners, an artist and surveyor, as directed by your resolutions. 
The President was informed of the time and place of their meeting 
to enter upon the discharge of this duty, and in answer stated his 
intention of laying the subject before Congress at its next session. 

" The commissioners, after the most accurate examination of the 
different streams which form the river St. Mary's, and the surround- 
ing country, came to the conclusion, upon evidence which is be- 
lieved to be entirely satisfactory, that the St. Mary's, as defined in 
the treaty of 1795, is to be found at the source of its middle or west- 
ern branch : that stream being longer, having more water, and agree- 
ing better with contemporaneous opinion than either of its branches. 
The quantity of land between the line run by the commissioners and 
that from the junction of the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers, to the 
place designated by Ellicott and the Spanish commissioners for the 
head of St. Mary's, is one million three hundred thousand acres. 
Most of it is exceedingly sterile, but intersected occasionally with 
tracts of very productive soil. Much of that which is valuable has 
been sold and granted by the United States. It will therefore be 
necessary for you to have the title tried, and direct the manner in 
which the territory is to be disposed of if the determination shall be 
in favor of the State.'' 



To his Excellency George R. Gilmer : 

Sir: The undersigned, appointed by your Excellency, agreeably 
to a resolution of the General Assembly, to ascertain the true head of 
the St. Mary's river, and thence to run out and mark to the junction 
of the Flint and Chattahoochee rivers the boundary line between the 
State of Georgia and the Territory of Florida, having performed 
the duties assigned them, respectfully submit the following report of 
their proceedings: 

[Gales & Seaton, print.] 



2 [Doc. No. 152.] • 

The question, which is the true liead or principal stream of the 
St. Mary's river. V)ein<>-. both in point of fact and general opinion, 
limited to the three i (ranches into ^vhich it is ramified at the distance 
of about lOD miles fr<^)m its mouth, and which are usually known as 
the north, middle or west, and south pronjfs of the St. Mary's river, 
our examinations were directed and confined to them. 

On the 18th of ^lay the expedition arrived in the vicinity of the 
north branch: and from that time until the 8th of June we were 
engagfed in examinintr it to its confluence with the south branch ; the 
latter to its head, and the middle or west brajich from its junction 
with the north to its source in Lake Randolph. Accurate surveys * 
were n)ade by Mr. Thomas of the north and middle branches; and he 
would have been directed to execute one of the s(»uth branch, had 
not that work been already performed by the late Mr. ^IcBride. and 
had it not been foimd. by a "ireneral examination of that stream, 
unnecessary, in order to decide on the true head of the river, and im- 
prudent, from the advanced state of the season and the ill health of 
the party. 

The discharges of water, and the areas of the channels,! whenever 
a comparative examination was deemed requisite. Avere ascertained 
with care and exactness by ^fr. Camak. who. in the selection and 
number of the points of observation, and in the repetition of the 
experiments, a^■oided. as far as practicable, the sources of error 
arising from partial circumstances. 

The scientific attainments and habitual accuracy of the latter gen- 
tleman, and the skill, experience, and fidelity of the former, have 
ensured that full and able discharge of tlie labors entrusted to them, 
which was to have been anticipated : and in submitting the results 
to your Excellency, it is done with the strongest assurance of their 
accuracy. 

In addition to the operations of the artist and survevor, a minute 
and extensive examination. ai(UHl by the best local guides, and all 
the information which was accessible, was made as far as it was 
deemed necessary, in order to decide on the relative importance of 
the three branches, their tributary streams, the swamps connected 
Avith them, and of the general features of the surrounding country. 

The examinations Avere made under circumstances the most favor- 
able for accuracy, as. during the time occupied in them, there was no 
rain, and none had occurred from the middle of \pril. About that 
time, a storm of unusual violence and extent had raised all the 
watercourses throughout the southern part of Georgia and Florida 
to an almost unprecedented height : and from that time to our ar- 
rival, the waters of the St. Mary's had been gradually subsiding, 
and were then in a state lower than their usual average height. 

A small drain, called the Hog-pen branch, having been pointed out 
as the longest of those which form the north branch of the St. Mary's 
river, the survey and examination of that stream were commenced at 
its head. 

The general course of the north branch, from the source of the 
Hog-pen branch to Ellicott's mound B. a distance of 6^ miles, is 
something south of west ; half a mile further it becomes nearly south, 

* See the accompanying chart (A). 

t See tlie report of scientific observation!' (P.). 



[Doc. No. 152. 1 3 

and that direction is kept for three miles, when, after receiving the 
Alligator creek, which falls into it from the west, the stream pur- 
sues a S. S. E. course to its confineuce with the middle branch, 19f 
miles from its head. The country lying to the south, from the head 
of the Hog-pen branch to the Alligator creek, is a low pine barren 
of unusual flatness, and almost covered with a net-work of cypress 
glades, savannahs, ponds, and bays. It occupies a space of about 
seven miles in lei'igth by three in breadth, and discharges its redun- 
dant waters into the north branch by several shallow drains, the most 
extensive of which, known as the river of Sticks, has by some per- 
sons been erroneously supposed to be the principal stream of the 
north branch. From the lowness and flatness of the land of this sec- 
tion, its surface passes alternately from the extremes of wet to those 
of dryness; being either, during seasons of heavy rains, a continued 
sheet of water, or, on the occurrence of a drought, a thirst}^ plain. 

To the north of the branch, for the distance of one and a half miles 
west from its head, the country is a low, level, pine barren; it then 
changes into an extensive cypress swamp, which was traced in a X. 
N. PI direction for ten or twelve miles, without arriving at its termi- 
nation. The channel of the branch passes through the southern skirt 
of this swamp, which is here a cypress flat, for a distance of five miles, 
when the swamp recedes from it to the north and west, and leaves an 
intermediate strip of low pine, land, varying in width from one to 
two miles, through wliich several small drains and narrow bays pass, 
connecting the swamp for a further distance of one and a half miles 
with the north branch. 

Below this point no further connexion exists, and the pine land 
becomes more elevated, until, a qiuirter of a mile below the old Indian 
crossing place, the Pine log. it again sinks at the junction of the 
Alligator creek with the north branch. 

As the opinion has, within a few years, been held by many persons, 
that the St. Mary's river is unconnected by an}'^ of its liranches with 
the Okefenokee swamp : nnd as the connexion, if any, must exist at 
this part of the north branch, our examinations were particularly 
directed to ascertain whether the swamp, which we had found to com- 
municate with it. was separated by any dividing ridge froui that 
which is usually known as the Okefenokee. For this purpose the best 
local guides were procured, among whom were two who had pre- 
viously believed in the existence of such ridge, and beginning at the 
Hog-pen branch, the swamp communicating with it, and lying to the 
north, was tAvice carefully examined along its eastern border, for a 
distance of about ten miles, in search of some opening by which it 
might be passed ; none however could be found; and. as it grew deeper 
and more impei-vious. the farther it was traced, and terminated in 
what is popularly known as the Okefenokee. the pursuit in this direc- 
tion was abandoned. The next object of inquiry was to ascertain 
whether a ridge was to be found between the Okefenokee and the 
swamp mentioned as communicating by small drains with the north 
branch. Commencing at the southern edge of the swamp, it was 
traced with care to the north and east, for about seven miles, to its 
termination at the point where the princi]ial channel of the branch 
enters it. Avithout the discovery of any passage. As the north branch 
passes through the five miles of swamp intermediate between the 



4 [Doe. Xo. 152.] 

points examined, it appears that it is in fact connected with a swamp, 
the border of which was examined for a distance of twenty-two miles, 
without finding any openinir or dividing ridge. This swamp having 
always been known as the Okefenokee. the conclusion seems to be 
irresistible that the north branch communicates, as has generally 
been supposed, with the Okefenokee swamp. 

Xotwithstanding, however, the connexion which seems thus to be 
established, the north branch does not appear to be the drain of any 
considerable portion of this swamp: but, in skirting it to the south 
and east, to receive the waters of its extreme border only. This 
opinion is founded upon the facts that the principal channel of the 
north branch penetrates but a short distance into the swamp ; and that 
the connecting drains are narrow and shallow, and rapidly diminish 
in size to their origin from the swamp, where all traces of a channel 
soon cease. The small size of the north branch, below the drains, and 
the circumstance that they and it not unfrequently go dry, are also 
inconsistent with the belief that any large portion of the swamp is 
drained by this stream. This is rendered the less probable by the 
well establish fact, that the Suwanee river forms the great drain of 
the Okefenokee: that, rising in the pine lands of Ware county, to the 
north of that swamp, it runs nearly through the centre of it, receiv- 
ing creeks of considerable size during its passage, and that it flows out 
from its southwest corner: a river, having usually a width of forty 
yards and a depth of three feet, with a current of considerable rapid- 
ity, contrasting strongh'^ with the ordinarily diminutive stream of the 
north branch of the St. Mary's. 

The exact extent of SAvamp between these two rivers, we had no 
means of ascertaining: but the probability is that it does not exceed 
ten miles, the half of which, at least, may be supposed to vent its 
waters down the Suwanee. The Okefenokee, instead of one deep and 
continued swamp, broken only by a few islands, as has been generally 
supposed, being, in fact, an immense net-work of bays, ponds, and 
swamps, with intervening islands of very low pine lands, which to- 
gether form a chain of swamps rather than a single one. it is highly 
probable that in so extensive a morass slight elevations, scarcely ap- 
preciable to the eye. may divide its waters, and cause them to flow 
in different directions. While the character of the swamp is, there- 
fore, favorable to the belief that such a division exists, as to cause 
a small part of its waters to flow into the north branch of the St. 
Mary's river, it is at the same time adverse to the opinion that at any 
point a high dividing ridge passes through it. 

Notwithstanding the fruitlessness of our researches, we would not 
be understood to assert that the great body of the Okefenokee is not 
separated by high land from the extensive swamp which we ex- 
amined: it may. however, be safely advanced that there is no positive 
evidence of the fact, and that the existence or non-existence of such 
a division is very immaterial to the subject of inquiry, which is, 
whether there is a connexion between the north branch of the St. 
Mary's river and a large swamp usmilly known as the Okefenokee; 
and not Avhether that has at any point a ridge of high land running 
through it. The negative evidence is. however, of some weight. The 
Indians on their journeys from the country lying to the southwest of 
the Okefenokee swamp, to *^t. Mary's, used the trail M-hich skirts the 
swamp to the south, and crossed the north branch at the Pine log, 



[Doc. Xo. 152.] 5 

leavin<: that part of the stream which we found connected with the 
swamp to the left. Had a hig-h dividing ridge existed, is it likely that 
it would have been unknown to them; and that they would not have 
availed themselves of it to shorten their journeys? This section of 
country has. moreover, been long pastured by large droves of cattle ; 
and it is well known how sagacious these animals are in discovering 
passages through swamps, wherever practicable: yet Mr. Barber and 
others, although annually engaged in herding stock in this very dis- 
trict of country, have, in the minute searches required in this pur- 
suit, been led by no trail to the disco Aery of such a ridge. Mr. Dyall, 
who was reported to have a knowledge of the ridge, when questioned, 
said that by it he meant, and others with whom he had conversed on 
the subject also meant, nothing more than that, during a season of 
great drought, a dry passage might be found between the north 
branch and the swamp, across the small drains already described as 
connecting the two. and through the cypress swamp beyond them. 
Of this we entertain no doubt : and the probability is that in some 
such misapplication of language the reported existence of a dividing 
ridge has originated. 

The Alligator creek, which unites with the north branch ten and a 
quarter miles below the head of TTog-pen branch, and nine and a half 
miles above the middle branch, is its principal tributary- stream. It 
is inferior in size to the north branch; and on the 20th of May, the 
volume of water discharged from it, per minute, at the point of junc- 
tion, was 556 cubic feet, while that of the latter was 845 cubic feet. 
No survey was made of this creek; but. from a general examination 
and information obtained, it was found to extend in a west direction 
from eight to ten miles, and to pass along the border of the Oke- 
fenokee swamp to the south, in the same way as the north branch 
does. 

From the Alligator creek to the middle branch, the country through 
which the north branch passes is moderately elevated: and several 
small branches occur, none of which, however, are worthy of any 
notice, as their usual length is only from one to three miles. In 
approaching the point of junction with the middle branch, the north 
blanch rapidly increases in size. The occurrence here of ravines, or 
waterways, parallel to, and communicating with, the principal chan- 
nel, together with masses of driftwood, both on the banks and across 
the bed of the stream, show that during the highest freshets the 
water spreads out over the adjoining land ; and that at such times it 
assumes the character of a torrent, and discharges a large volume of 
water. These indications of a great occasional discharge forni a 
strong contrast with the small quantity of water usually passing 
down its channel; an alternative, however, from the fullness of the 
torrent to the scantiness of the rill, which is the necessary effect of 
the flat and low country from which its waters are principally de- 
rived, and of the circumstance that its branches are nearly equal in 
length, and radiate as it were from a common centre. 

From the first cause it happens, but little rain being required to 
saturate the ground, that the great body of it runs, immediately as it 
falls, into the branches, and swells them for a short time to a great 
size. AVhen. however, this flood has passed off', and the surface mois- 
ture has evaporated, which soon takes place when a thin sheet of 
water is freely exposed to the rays of the sun. no spring existing, the 



6 [Doc. Xo. 152.] 

only permanent supply is reduced to the scant}- percolations from 
ponds and swamps. The tendency of the depressed surface of the 
country to produce sudden and temporary rises of water, is much 
increased by the comparative equality in lenf^h. and the opposite 
courses of the two principal streams which form the north branch. 
The rain which falls on the low districts drained by them, arriv- 
ing almost simultaneously at their point of continence, produces a 
temporally glut, which could not occur to the same extent where a 
single stream of greater length drains an equal surface of country. 
In the latter case, the water from the lower districts being partially 
discharged before that from the upper can come down, the rise in the 
stream, altliough of h)nger continuance, will at no time be so great. 

The channel of tlie north branch, innnediately above its union with 
the middle branch, has an average depth from the top of the banks 
of about 10 feet, with an average section the area of which is 464 
square feet. On the 26th of May. 14 feet only of this space were 
occupied by the current of water: which, flowing with a mean ve- 
locity of 66 feet per minute, discharged during the same tiine 950 
cubic feet of water. The extent of country drained by this branch 
may be estimated at about 174 miles. This calculation, which is 
founded on the lengths of the watercourses, and the average breadth 
of the country drained by them, is without that precision which can 
only be obtained by a minute and extensive survey of the whole 
country : it is, however, believed to be a tolerably near approxima- 
tion to the truth ; and, as the same principles are adopted with respect 
to the other branches, the error, whatever it may be. Avill not affect 
the correctness of the comparison. 

The middle or west branch forms the drain of the coinitr}' lying to 
the south of the Okefenokee swamp, and between it and the south 
branch : it rises farther to the west than any other of the head waters 
of the St. Mary's river, and lias its source in Lake Randolph, usually 
known as the Ocean pond. This lake is a sheet of clear water, nearly 
circular, two miles in diameter, and with an average depth of from 
8 to 10 feet. The surrounding country is elevated but a few feet 
above the level of the lake, and drains into it for several miles, except 
to the southeast and south, when the head waters of the Oaluskee. a 
tributary of the Santa Fe. approach to within a mile. The redundant 
waters of the lake are discharged into the middle branch by several 
drains which, with the intervening morass, occupy- a portion of the 
border of nearly a mile in length. At their points of connexion with 
the lake these drains aie deep and wide: they, however, gradually 
diminish in size; and at the distance of two and three-quarters miles, 
after having previously united into one stream, the branch formed 
by them leaves a deep cypres- swamp, which extends from the lake 
to that point, and. ])assing by a shallow channel, varying in width 
from 50 to 100 feet, through a low pine barren, it enters Gum swamp 
live miles from the lake. Between the '2d and 5th of June, when 
our examination was made, there was water in the channel, and a 
perceptible current from the lake to the termination of the cypress 
swamp. Thence to the Gum swamp the channel was dry, and at the 
latter point the water was again found to flow. On the 16th of 
August. Avhen the exj^edition returned to this point, a stream of 
water from 30 to 40 feet wide and 6 inches deep was found flowing 
with a l)risk curi-ent through that part of the channel which had 



[Doc. No. 152.1 7 

l)revioiisly been dry. Gum swainp. through which the middle branch 
passes for ten miles, is a deep and extensive swamp, connected to 
the west with a long chain of ponds and swamps, which are said to 
reach to within ten miles of the Suwanee river. The drain b}^ which 
these waters are discharged into the middle branch, was followed up 
for several miles, until it was found to end in a shallow swamp. 
After leaving Gum swamp, the country, wdiich from Lake Randolph 
is Hat and low. becomes gradually higher, and a number of small, 
clear, running branches fall into the middle branch. Little river, a 
bold creek, flows into it about -26 miles below Lake Randolph, and is 
its principal tributary; in size it is about one-third of the branch, and 
was reported to extend about miles in a northwest direction. 
From this point to the junction of the middle with the north branch, 
w hich is 33 miles from the head of the lake, the country becomes still 
higher, and is intersected with several small branches. On approach- 
ing the confluence of these two streams, the water channels, driftwood, 
and other indications of a large discharge of water, previously de- 
scribed, are to be met with on this branch. In these respects, and in 
general size, the two streams are so nearly alike, that their compara- 
tive superiority is to the unassisted eye a matter of doubt. Resorting 
to measurement, the channel of this branch immediately above the 
junction was found to have an average sectional area of 493 square 
feet, of which the water occupied only -20 feet. The volume of water 
discharged on the 26th of May was 1,.584 cubic feet, and the mean 
velocity of the current 78 feet per minute. The countiy drained by 
it and its tributaries may be estimated at 250 square miles. If with 
these data the north is compared with the middle branch, it will be 
perceived that the latter is superior to the former in length, surface 
of country drained, volume of water discharged, and sectional area 
of channel; the first being as 33 to 19^, the second as 250 to 174, the 
third as 1,584 to 950. and the last as 493 to 464. That the same rela- 
tive difference does not exist in the last circumstance as in the others, 
may be explained on the principle that, in a country of a loose and 
friable soil, the size of the channel is dependent on the greatest, and 
not on the habitual discharge of water. It has already been 
attempted to show why the north branch, being more central to the 
district which it drains, should, in discharging the same quantity of 
water, effect it in a shorter time and in a greater volume, than 
another stream, which, like the middle branch, although draining a 
more extensive tract of country, is yet longer, and passes through a 
region of greater elevation. 

The conclusion to which we arrived, of the superiority of the middle 
branch, is supported by the concurrent belief of the most intelligent 
inhabitants of the country, who coincide, without exception, as far 
as our inquiries extended, in the opinion that although partial rains 
affect the relative sizes of the two, yet the middle branch does ordi- 
narily, and during the course of the year, discharge much more water 
than the north, and is in fact the larger stream. Having been led 
to the conclusion that the middle l)ranch is larger than the north, the 
next object of inquiry was whether the stream formed by their 
united waters was inferior or superior to the south branch. 

After the confluence of the two branches, the river formed by them, 
which Ave shall designate as the north branch, winds by a very circuit- 
ous course through a country of somewhat increasing: elevation, for a 



8 [Doc. No. 152.] 

distance of 11^ miles to its junction with the south branch, receiving 
in its progress several small streams, none of which are worthy of 
notice except Cedar creek, which enters into it from the right bank 
5^ miles below the middle branch, and a short distance above Elli- 
cott's mound of observation A. This creek drains the country lying 
between the north and middle branches, and is about 1"2 miles in 
length. The channel of the north branch throughout this dist.ance 
is much obstructed by driftwood, and exhibits strong evidence of a 
great and unequal discharge of water. Bars of sand are thrown up, 
and deep holes scooped out in continued succession along the whole 
length of the channel, producing alternately expanses of deep and 
sluggish Avater, or shallow and rapid currents. At a short distance 
above the confluence of the south branch, the average of three sections 
of the channel of the north gave an area of 763 square feet, of which 
37^ only were occupied by water. At the same point, on the 20th 
of May. the mean velocity of the current was 105 feet per minute, and 
the volume of water discharged was 3.957 cubic feet. The surface 
of country drained by the north and middle branches, the united 
waters of which, together with that by Cedar creek, here form the 
north branch, may be estimated at 546 square miles. 

The south branch is a stream widely differing in its general charac- 
ter and appearance from those which we have already described. Its 
Avaters, instead of the warmth and brown color of those of the north 
and middle branches, which shoAv that thej' have been derived from 
the low lands, swamps, and ponds, were, at the time of our examina- 
tion, cold and clear, indicating their origin to have been in the snrings 
f»f a more elevated country. Its narrow channel, uniformity of bed, 
and velocity of water, and the comparative absence of driftwood 
and ravines, are all proofs of a stream more uniform in its discharge 
of water, anci less subject to sudden and great alternations than the 
north branch. The causes of this difference are readily found in 
the undulating surface and elevation of the country through which 
it passes for the greater part of its course, particularly that portion 
of it which lies near its mouth, and to the south. This formation, 
which abounds in small spring branches, extends about two-thirds 
of its whole course. In ascending this branch, it rapidly diminishes 
in size, and within five miles of its mouth the channel is so narrow 
that trees of a moderate size interlock across it. AboAe Turkey creek, 
which is about eight or ten miles from the junction, it becomes a 
very inconsiderable stream. Avith a narroAv and shalloAv channel, and 
a run of Avater so small as to admit of being easily straddled. Turkey 
creek. Avhich is the most important of the streams falling into this 
branch: has its source from six to eight miles to the south : its channel 
is in size about one-fourth of that of the south branch. notAvithstand- 
ing which inferiority, the volume of water passing doAvn it was on 
the 30th of May 175 cubic feet, while that from the latter did not 
exceed 113 per minute. 

About sixteen miles from its mouth, the running Avater of this 
branch Avas diminished to a stream a foot in width. Avith a depth of 
a fcAv inches, oozing through a bed of moss and grass Avhich ob- 
structed a shalloAv channel of from ten to fifteen feet wide, and two 
deep: at a mile above, the channel Avas dry and dusty: immediately 
beyond the latter point, the country becomes low. and the channel of 
the stream is lost in a chain of swamps, bays, and ponds, which, after 



[Doc. Ko. 152.] 9 

diverging from each other, and covering the country for a distance 
of nine or ten miles with their various ramifications, reunite a short 
distance from Lake Spalding, and communicate with it by a narrow 
and shallow channel. This channel was at the period of our exami- 
nation quite dr3\ and, from its size and the general indications 
around, the current of water passing down it must, during even the 
most rainy seasons of the year, be small. Lake Spalding, which by a 
traverse was ascertained to lie between four and five miles to the 
S. S. E. of Lake Eandolph, resembles the latter in its general appear- 
ance, with water however less clear, the surrounding land more 
swampy, and a surface of small extent. As no instrumental survey 
was made of this branch during the expedition, the distances given 
have been taken either from 'Mr. McBride's chart, or on those which 
are received as the true ones by the inhabitants of the neighbor- 
hood. Assimiing the total length to be thirty miles, as stated by Mr. 
McBride. the surface of country drained by it may be estimated at 
two himdred and twenty-two square miles. The mean of three sec- 
tions of the channel, near its junction with the north branch, gave an 
area of four hundred and tAventy square feet, twenty of which were 
c»nly occupied by water. The mean velocity of the stream was, on 
the 29th of May, 71 feet per minute, and the volume of water dis- 
charged during the same time was 1,450 cubic feet. Instituting a 
comparison between the north and south branches, it appears that 
the former is to the latter in length, from the head of the middle 
branch to the confluence, without including the north branch proper, 
and excluding also Cedar creek, as 44f miles to 30. in surface of 
country drained as 546 miles to 222, in volume of water discharged 
as 3.957 cubic feet to 1,450, and in sectional area of channel as 763 
square feet to 430. A superiority in reference to every criterion of 
size so very great and manifest as to admit of no doubt in arriving at 
a decision unfavorable to the south branch. 

It will be perceived, on reference to Mr. McBride's report of the 
examinations made by him in Julj^, 1826, that a difference exists 
between the comparative discharges of water by the two streams, as 
observed by him and qurselves ; the volume of water from the north 
branch being at that time only 993 cubic feet, while from the south 
it was 1,369 per minute. The discrepancy is however not at all 
surprising, when it is recollected that he visited this region during a 
period of extraordinary drought, at a time when, the surface waters 
of the country being dried up, the south branch, from the greater 
number of spring branches flowing into it. might be expected to 
contain a larger mass of water. It is also possible that the relative 
size of the streams might have been influenced by a greater fall of 
rain on the country drained by the south branch, at a period not very 
remote from that of his examination. These disturbing causes, with 
others, render an}^ comparison of the two streams, which is founded 
exclusively in a few observations of the quantity of water discharged 
by them, so very fallacious, as to be of no value imless the measure- 
ments are made under very favorable circumstances, and then the 
results are to be regarded only as facts useful as accessories, but, 
separately, inconclusive. 

The examinations of the three branches having resulted in the con- 
clusion that the middle or west was the tnie head of the St. Mary's 
river, we decided on a point on the southern border of Lake Ran- 



10 [Doc. Xo. 152.] 

dolph as the eastern extremity of the boundary line. Our reasons 
for this selection were, that this point is in the general direction of 
the stream, opposite to the outlet of the lake, and that a line con- 
necting the two divides the lake into two equal parts; thus corre- 
sponding with the conditions of the treaty of peace with Great 
Britain of 1783. and of that with Spain of ITO."). both of which detine 
the course of the boundary line between Georgia and Florida to be '" to 
the head of the St. Mary's river; and thence, down along the middle 
of the St. Maiy's river, to the Atlantic Ocean." 

From this point the guide or random line was commenced on the 
8th of June, and, owing to the daily occurrence of rain, was only 
finished on the 18th of July. On the latter day the true line was 
begim at the extreme point of the tongue of land between the Flint 
and Chattahoochie rivers, which is well defined, and terminated on 
the 16th of August at the point selected on Lake Randolph. The 
course of the line from the junction of the Flint and Chattahoochie 
rivers is south 77^ 49' 32" east, subject to a correction of 1° 11' 50", 
to be subtracted from the south, to rectify the deviation of the rhomb 
line from the arc of a great circle, being nearly -29" per mile. The 
length of the line was one hundred and forty-eight miles. The 
whole was distinctly marked, the line trees lettered, and the distance 
noted on the trees, with the exception of that part of it which lies 
between the seventy-fifth and eightj^-second miles, from the western 
extremity, and another interval of one and a fourth niilo. about the 
sixty-ninth mile. These sections lying through an almost imper- 
vious morass, and containing at the time a depth of from three to 
four feet of stagnant and almost putrid water, could onh* have been 
run and marked at the imminent risk of the lives of the party, then 
diseased and nearly broken down by their long continued exposure, 
during a sickly season, to incessant rains, a tropical heat, and all the 
difficulties of a country peculiarh' unfavoi-ablc for such operations. 
The omission was submitted to with the loss rohictaiico, as. from the 
general absence of trees, the course of the line coidd scarcely have 
been marked, and the character of this section forbids the idea of 
its ever being reclaimed from its present state. Should it however 
be deemed necessary, the deficiency may, at a more favorable season, 
be supplied by a common surveyor, who will only have to connect 
two distinctly marked points. By the present selection of the east- 
ern extremity of the l)oundary line, the territory embraced within the 
limits of the State of Georgia, beyond that which it would contain 
if the point designated by pjllicott were established, is about two 
thousand square miles, or nearly 1.300.000 acres, being a triangle, 
the north side of which is about one hundred and fifty-eight miles 
long, the southeast twenty-nine and a quarter, and the southwest 
one hundred and forty-eight. The territory embraced within these 
limits is, in ])roj)ortion to its e.iitent, of very little agricultural 
value. That portion which lies about the head streams of the St. 
Mary's river, a fiat and low district of pine land, otl'ers generally 
a good pasturage for stock, but. from its want of elevation and 
fertility, afi'ords but a few spots. Avidely separated, that are fit for 
tillage. In apj^roaching the Suwanee river, the country becomes 
more elevated, but its general character of sterility continues until, 
about twenty miles west of it, the Hickstown tract offers the first 
extensive bodv of rich lands. Thence to the Ocilla river the country 



[Doc. Xo. 152.] 11 

is low, and thickly studded Avith ponds and bays. Between the 
Ocilla and Ochlochney rivers lies a district of country, which, 
although generally objectionable on account of its hilly surface, 
and containing much land that is poor, is yet. on the whole, one 
highly favorable to agriculture. Within it, particularly near the 
lakes Mickasuk5^ Yamonia, and Jackson, are extensiA^e tracts of rich 
oak and hickory lands, and considerable bodies of valuable hammock. 
From the Ochlochney to Flint river, elevated pine lands of good 
quality predominate, with strips of rich hammock on Little river, 
Attapulgus Swamp creek. Wythlacoochie, and other streams, which, 
thickly intersecting this district, make it the best watered of any 
through which the line passes. 

The discussions on the subject of the boundary line having given 
importance to the question, whether either of the branches had been 
popularly and exclusively called the St. Mary's river, our inquiries 
were directed to procure testimony with reference to it. The country 
in which these streams are situated, having been but recently settled, 
and the adjoining territory of Georgia at all times very sparsely 
inhabited, the sources of information were found to be very defect- 
ive. We were, however, assured b}' Major Clark. Avhose long res- 
idence in St. Marys, and familiar acquaintance with the country, 
entitle his opinion to the greatest weight, that neither of the branches 
has. within his knowledge, been exclusively called the St. Mary's 
river or head stream of it; but that, on the contrary, they have alwaj'S 
been spoken of as the north, middle, or west and south prongs of the 
St. Mary's. Mr. Israel Barber, who has resided twenty-six years 
in the vicinity of the north branch, and who was the first white 
settler of that part of the country, as well as every individual ques- 
tioned on this subject, concurred in this statement. The fact that 
at the present time these streams are universally spoken of as the 
branches or prongs of the St. Mary's, and neither exclusively as 
that river, is a negative evidence of some weight on the subject, as 
it is not probable that any designation which had been originally 
used would have been discontinued, particularly as Mr. Ellicott's 
selection of the north branch would have tended to confirm to that 
stream the sole and exclusive title of the St. Mary's river, had it 
previously existed. 

We have the honor to be. with great respect. 

Your Excellency's most obedient servants, 

J. CRAWFORD. 

J. HAMILTON COUPER. 



29th CoNGKKSs, [SEX ATE.] [9*5! 

1st Session. 



Rp]S0LUT10NS 

OF 

IHE LEGISLATURE OF FLORIDA, 

IN RELATION 

7'o the disputed boundaries hettreen that State owl Georgia a,nd 

Alabama. 

FeBRT AKY -2. 1846. 
Referred to the Committee oil the Ji'.diei.iry, :in<i ordered to be printed. 



Resolutlotis reJatire to the appointment of a com.inissioner to a,ct 
with commissioners of Alabama and Georgia, to nin the boundary 
line between Florida and the States of Georgia and Alabam.a. 

Be it re soloed by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
State of Florida in General Assembly convened^ That his excellency 
the governor of Florida be, and he is hereby, authorized to appoint 
a fit and competent person to act and confer with persons to be ap- 
pointed by the governors of Georgia and Alabama, to act as com- 
missioners to run and mark a boundary line between the States of 
Georgia, Alabama, and Florida, in conformity with the treaty of 
1795 between the United States and the King of Spain; and his ex- 
cellency the governor be further authorized to furnish said commis- 
sioner, on the part of Florida, with such assistance as may in his 
opinion be necessary. 

Be it further resolved. That the governor of Florida be, and he is 
hereby, authorized and required to ask the general government, 
through its proper authorities, to send a commissioner on the part 
of the United States to confer with the commissioners of Georgia and 
Alabama and Florida in running and marking said line, and to act 
as umpire in any disagreement which may occur between them ; and 
that our Senators and Representative in Congress be asked to en- 
deavor to obtain an appropriation from Congress to pay the same. 

(Adopted by the House of Representatives December 17, 1845; 
adopted bv the Senate December 20. 1845: approved bv the governor 
December" 24. 1845.) 

State of Florida: 

I, James T. Archer, secretary of state of Florida, do hereby cer- 
tify that the foregoing is a true transcript from the original in my 
office. 

Witness mv hand and the seal of the State, at the Capitol, 
[l. s.] in Tallahassee, this 24th day of December. A. D. 1845, and 
70th vear of American independence. 

JAMES T. ARCHER. 
Secretary of State of Florida.. 



L96J 2 

ExEcinivE Office, 
Tallahassee, December 25, 1845. 
Sir : I hereAvith enclose you a copy of " resolutions relative to the 
appointment of a commissioner, to act with commissioners of Ala- 
bama and Georgfia. to run the boundaiT line between Florida and the 
States of Georgria and AlaVjama." in which '" our Senators ixnd. Rep- 
resentative in Congress are asked to endeavor to obtain an appro- 
priation from Congress to pay the same." when said States shall have 
acceded to the propositions cx:>ntained in these resolutions, of which 
you will be informed. 

I have also transmitted copies of these resolutions to tlie govern- 
ors of Georgia and Alabama, to the President of the United States, 
to the Hon. Mr. I^evy. and to our Representative in Congress. 
I have the honor to be. very respectfully, your obedient servant. 

^ W. D. MOSKI.KY. 
Hon. J. D. Westcott, 

U. S. Senator from Florida. 



Executive Office, 
Tallahassee, January 3. 1846. 

Sir: A communication was received to-day from the governor of 
Georgia, a copy of which is herewith sent to you. 

I shall proceetl forthwith to appoint connnissioners on the part of 
this State, Avith a surveyor and such other agents as may be found 
necessary to accomplish this long delayed object. You. of course, 
are apprized of our poverty, and can form a fair estimate of the 
probable expense attending it. Is there no Avay of placing the bur- 
den upon the purse of the United States? If there be, I should be 
obliged to you for any aid that you may afford us. I have selected 
as commissioners on the part of this State, (xovernors Duval and 
Branch. They have not as yet advised me of their acceptance. 

Very respectfully. 

W.D. MOSELEY. 

Hon. J. D. Westcott, Jr.. 

United States Senator. 

P. S. I have addressed a note to the President, of this date, on the 
same subject. W. D. M. 

Executive Department, 
Milled cjeville, December 20, [30,] 1845. 

Sir: I have had the honor to receive yours of the 25th instant, 
accompanied by a resolution of the General Assembly of Florida, 
in relation to the boundary of that State and of Georgia. I hasten 
to lay before you a copv of a resolution on the same subject, which 
the legislature*^ of this State lately passed. This simultaneous move- 
ment of both States, acting upon the suggestion of Florida. I trust 
may be regarded as an earnest of the inclination prompting each 
State to an early and amicable settlement of their limits. 

It Avill be my purpose to organize the Georgia commission Avith the 
greatest dis]-»atch. and give notice thereof to your excellency. I shall 
hope to accomplish this duty in the course of thirty days, and in 
the meantime shall be pleased to be informed of the corresponding 
action by the authorities of Florida on this subject. 



3 [96] 

You will allow me to it'inark. thai ihe proposition as to liic umpire 
is objectionable, for various reasons. That the federal <>-overnment 
is, to some extent, directly or indirectly concerned in the decision of 
the question of boundary; that the two States have exclusive author- 
ity over the question, and ma}^ be presumed not only capable but 
willino- to decide it, according to the conceded premises, with mathe- 
matical accuracy, and that delay might arise in the execution of the 
work from a want of cimgressional action. This latter suggestion is 
made from the previous course of th6 federal government, when 
Georgia desired, as evinced by her legislature through a series of 
years, to have the question of boundar}'^ definitely settled whilst 
Florida was a territory. 

I will only add. that in relation to the expenses of the conmiission, 
on the part of Georgia, the last legislature have made adequate 
provision. 

I have the honor to be, with great respect, your very obedient and 
humble servant, 

GEO. W. CRAWFOED. 

His Excellency ^y. D. Moseley, Tallahassee. 



IN SENATE. 

Resolved hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the State 
of Georgia in Genercd Assembly met. That his excellenc}' tlie gover- 
nor be. and he is hereby, authorized and requested to appoint two 
commissioners on the part of this State, to meet such commissioners 
as may be appointed on the part of Florida, for the purpose of set- 
tling the boundary between said States, under such restriction as he 
may deem necessarj". 

Agreed to, December 6th, 1845. 

ABSALOM H. CHAPPELL, 

President of the Senate. 
Test: 
Thos. R. R. Cobb, 

Secretary of the Senede. 

In House of Representatives, concurred in. December -iSd. 1845. 

CHARLES J. JENKINS, 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
Test : 
John J. Word, 

Clerk ?Io'use of Representatives. 

Assented to, December 29th. 1845. 

GEO. W. CRAWFORD, Governor. 

Secretary of State's Office. 
Milledgeville, Decemher 30, 1845. 
I certify that the above is a true copy from the original deposited 
in this office. 

[l. s.] Given under my hand and seal of office. 

N. C. BARNETT, 

Secretary of State. 
43064— S. Doc. 467, 60-1 12 



20tii coNciKEss. [SENATE.] 

1st Session. 



DOCUMENTS 



IN RELATION TO 



The disputed houndary line hetween the State of Florida and the 

State of Georgia. 



February 12, 1846. 
Referred to the Committee ou the Judiciary, and ordered to be printed. 



Executive Department, 

Milledgeville, January 26, 1846. 

Sir: In further prosecution of the wish, as recently expressed 
by the authorities of Florida, and readily concurred in by those of 
Georgia, of having definitely established the boundary between them, 
I have now to say to your excellency, that James Hamilton Couper 
and Joel Crawford, esquires, have been appointed commissioners on 
the part of Georgia to join such as may be designated on the part 
of Florida. 

I have availed myself of the first moment since the acceptance of 
these gentlemen has been notified to this department, to inform your 
excellency of our proceedings on this subject, and beg leave, with 
great respect, to suggest that the business of the commission may be 
commenced at the shortest period compatible with the convenience 
of the commissioners. I have taken the liberty of saying to the gen- 
tlemen representing Georgia, that I shall indicate a wish to your 
excellency that the work may be commenced early in April next, and 
to request that they will then be ready for the service. 

In the meantime, I shall be happy to hear from your excellency 
any suggestions which may expedite and conclude this controversy 
of territorial limits, hitherto peaceful, between the States of Georgia 
and Florida, and in which I am assured that both desire an adjust- 
ment only in accordance with their respective rights. 

The inquiries made suggestively of your excellency, especially in 
reference to the period of commencing operations by the commis- 
sioners, will induce me to expect the reply of your excellency at your 
earliest convenience; and in the meantime, to say that I remain, with 
great respect, your excellencv's very obedient, humble servant. 

G. W. CRAWFORD. 

His Excellency W. D. Moseley, 

Tallahassee. 



Executive Department, 

Tallahassee, February 2. 1846. 

Sir : Your communication of the 26th ultimo was received this day. 
In reply, I have the honor to state that the commissioners on the part 



[133] 2 

of this State, John Branch and AV. P. Duval, esqrs., propose to meet 
the commissioners on the part of the State of Georgia, at the town 
of St. Mary's, on the second daj' of April next, as the most suitable 
place for the commencement of their labors. Should it be more 
agi'eeable, however, to the commissioners of the State of Georgia to 
select some other day and place, such selection will be acquiesced in 
with pleasure on the part of the commissioners of this State, being 
duly notified of the same. 

I have the honor to be. very respectfullv. vour obedient servant, 

W. D. MOSELEY. 

His Excellency G. W. Craavford, 

MiUcdgeville. 

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